Circumstances
by Lianna-snow
Summary: Life is made of choices. Choices are affirmed by circumstances. A throwback into the team's childhood, definitely AU. First fic in this fandom. Heading towards Tiva. Rated T because of circumstances.
1. Chapter 1

Circumstances-1

I'm gonna talk at the end of the chapter, so this will be short. Basically, HI, This is my first time venturing into this fandom. So, please don't be too harsh on me:3 I wrote this down after being attacked by a plot bunny this morning. I greatly appreciate any feedback and I'll do my best to write better in future! Okay, you can read now:9 HAPPY NEW YEAR GUYS

Warning: Character death in this chapter..

Disclaimer-don't own them:/

#####

"I hate you."

"I love you too, Ziva."

"Shut up. Do not say things that you do not mean, Tony."

"I meant it!"

"No.. you did not. Now, please, go away. I need to study for my chemistry test next period."

"Why didn't you study last night? What were you so busy doing that you forgot about your test? Anything dirty that I should know about?"

"Tony, what I do at night is none of your business. Keep your mind out of the garbage bin."

"Actually, it's the gutter."

"Why? Placing your head in a garbage bin is a much more feasible feat, yes?"

"Well, actually... Oh, nevermind, you'll never get it." Tony sighed and shook his head at her confused expression.

"I am not stupid, so stop treating me like a fool. I understood perfectly well what you said. It was just the way I had expressed it."

"Oh god, you guys. I leave for less than 5 minutes, and you two already look like you're about to burst into an arguement." A stack of books suddenly walked up to their table, and placed itself down on it, revealing an annoyed Kate. The two broke their gaze and turned towards her.

"What's with the book raid, Kate?" Tony asked, leaning back against the chair. "You entering the Guinness World Record for 'Most Boring'?"

"To Kill a Mocking Bird, Harper Lee. This is quite a good book." Ziva gently picked up the first book she saw and read it out.

"I doubt you'd even understand half of it, Zee-Vah. The English is perfect." Tony smirked from his chair, resulting in an eye roll from Kate, and a glare from Ziva.

"I bet you did not even read through the synopsis before giving up on it, To-Nee." She emphasized on his name as she gave him a self satisfied smile when Tony crossed his arms and frowned.

"Come on, Kate. We have study period next. " Tony got up and pulled Kate out, sticking his tongue out at Ziva as he went, with Kate ordering him to let go of her hand.

Ziva just smiled, and turned her attention back to her chemistry textbook. There was peace and quiet. At last, she could concentrate and study.

###

He felt a small shiver race up his spine, or was it a tingle of excitement? He stepped through the front gates and entered the school. Classes were just about over, so he figured that he should just wait somewhere safe for his sister to come out of class.

He settled for the short stretch of lockers next to her classroom. This was his third visit to the school, and he still felt frightened to even lean against the wall. His first visit was a disaster, his second visit was better handled, but it had been ages since he had last dared to venture back into the hallway. When the doors burst open and students came streaming out, it was all he could do to not run and hide in the toilet.

"Just a few more minutes," he told himself. That's all he needed to wait. She had to be coming out soon. She probably was going to find her friend in the softmore year.

"Hey Probie! Did you make a wreck out of the school again?"

"Hi Tim. Are you here to meet your sister? She forgot her library books and went back to collect them. She should be back any minute."

He looked up to see two familiar faces grinning at him. Tony and Ziva. He smiled back.

"Why are you guys smiling at each other? Did I miss something?" Kate walked up to them, arms loaded with books.

"Yeah. It's called being happy." Tony said. He quickly raised his arms in surrender when Kate started to use her books to hit him. "I am happy! It's just a deeper level of happiness that you haven't reached because of your level of maturity."

"Really? Any deeper, and you'll be talking to dinosaurs." Tony snorted.

"Shut up, Tony. C'mon Tim, we should get going. Bye, Ziva. You'll have to handle him on your own today, Tim and I have to head to a family lunch." Kate waved to her friends and walked off with her brother.

"Why do you call him 'Probie'?" Ziva asked when they were just about to reach his street.

"Because the first time he came here, he nearly got himself killed; and so he was put on the school's probation list."

"It was before my time then."

"I guess you could say that." Tony reached up to knock on the door when it burst open, and a young girl darted out and engulfed Tony in a bone crushing hug. The "Hello Abby" from Ziva was temporarily ignored.

"TONYTONYTONYTONYTONY you're BACK!" The girl squealed when she finally let him breathe. "What took you so long? I came back half an hour ago! Gibbs is so pissed that you're late." She spoke very fast, and was jumping up and down as she spoke, her two black ponytails bobbing up and down. "ZIVA! HI! " she suddenly turned to the girl next to him and enveloped her into a hug, as Tony stepped inside.

"Hey Gibbs. I was late because the school released us late, and there were too many people so I couldn't move faster and then I missed the bus and-" He was cut off by a slap on the back of his head. "Thank you Gibbs. It won't happen again."

"I know it won't." He smiled and walked back into the dining room, where Abby had dragged Ziva to, and where Jenny was setting the table. Tony slipped off his back pack and left it on the foot of his bed before running down the stairs to join them.

###

"Caitlyn, I'm gonna need you to buy some groceries before going back. We're running out of milk and eggs."

"And yoghurt!" Tim shouted out.

"Okay, do I take Tim with me?"

"No. There are a few company executives who want to meet our little computer genius. They may want him to head a group of computer scientists. So, you have to come back on your own. You can handle it right? Your father and I didn't enroll you in karate classes for nothing."

"Yes, mother. I'll be fine." She said before walking away. Tim had always been her mother's favourite. Ever since he had first touched a computer keyboard, and reconfigured the whole thing, and successfully expel the virus that wiped out the hard drive. Plus, he had also managed to recover all the lost data within minutes.

While she, however, never got credit for anything she did. When she trained hard for many months and finally achieved her brown belt in a new record, all her parents said was, "why didn't you get your black belt yet?" She always had to study hard in order to pass her tests in school, while Tim just skipped grades.

She didn't hate her brother. In fact, most of the time, she had to be the one taking care of him, since their mother was always busy working. She cared for her brother greatly, because he had always been bullied. Since he skipped so many grades, everyone in his class were seniors.

Kate placed her wallet back into her bag after paying, picked up her back pack, and was about to pick up the bag of groceries, when her cell phone rang. It was Tony. She couldn't ignore it.

"Kate? Did you take my biology homework by mistake?" She rolled her eyes, even though he wasn't there physically, as she slid her bag off one shoulder so she could unzip it. The worksheets were there, as expected. "Don't roll your eyes."

"Dammit, how did you know?" She laughed, as she walked out of the store.

"I know you well. Could you pass them to me later today? Ziva's at my place, we just ate, and she's boring me to death. OW!" Kate could hear him yelp after hearing a thump. 'Ziva probably punched him on the shoulder because of his comment. ' she thought.

"Help! Somebody help me!" Kate turned around and saw a young girl getting pulled off behind the street corner. She left her phone in her hand, and chased after the two thugs who were dragging her. Their skin was fairly tan, and from their backs, they looked like foreigners.

"Hey! Stop right there or I'll call the police!" The shout caused them to turn and the young girl managed to slip out of their grip. The thugs began to advance towards her.

She raised her phone in threatening manner, and pretended to dial 911. That was a mistake, however, for one of them pulled out a gun from his pocket. She lunged forward and kicked the gun out of his hands, before punching him in the stomach. He bent forward and grimaced as she knocked his head against the wall and did the choke hold on the other guy. He collapsed on the floor within seconds.

She bent down to retrieve the phone which dropped onto the floor during the struggle, when a single gunshot rang out.

######

Well, that's the end of the first chapter:). I would appreciate it if you would be kind enough to leave me some reviews telling me what you thought about it. Whether it was OOC, or the stuff you like, and stuff you dislike. Hopefully, this won't take too long to write:/ since this year is my examination year.. The next chapters will be longer though:3

~ Lianna


	2. Chapter 2 Aftermath

Circumstances-2

Good day everyone! It's me again! Just so you know, I'm actually on a hiatus so I can't update this very often for now. If you check my profile, you'll see that I'm still working on two other fanfics. I'll update more often once I get those few done, okay? I still have a lot of back lot to do, plus a bit of collabs here and there are due. So, in a mean time, enjoy reading! And OH MY GOSH THE LATEST NCIS EPISODE... SO MUCH TIVA:D yay CI-Ray is GONE~~ I didnt like him much... I loved that Ziva punched him though haha:)

WARNING: IM SO SORRY. I REALLY DIDN'T LIKE DOING THIS CHAPTER, BUT IT HAD TO BE DONE. Character Death. MAJOR. if I haven't warned you already... Please don't hate me for this:(

Disclaimer-I can't own NCIS if I kill someone like this.

Chapter 2: Aftermath.

###

-FLASHBACK-

Ziva and Tony were sitting out in the backyard. She was sitting on the makeshift swing that she beat him to, reading one of her books. The swing rocked gently to the breeze as she shifted her position to keep the swing in motion. Her hair was blowing slightly in the wind, and her eyes were glimmering with excitement and wonder as she followed the storyline.

Tony leant against the tree branches above her. He was fiddling with his cell phone, playing an old game to make a new record. Every once in awhile, he would look down and sneak secret glances at her. She was really beautiful, even from his position. He had wondered to himself many a time, how lucky he was, so as to get such an exotic beauty, as one of his best friends. This was the first girl he had actually not asked out after a few encounters. They had argued on their first meeting, and after being formally introduced by Kate, they had become just as close as Kate and him were; or maybe even closer.

They weren't in the same grade, so they didn't see each other much in school. However, outside school, Kate, Ziva, and him, were almost inseperable. They spent nearly everyday with each other, heading over to either one's homes to study, or even simply just going over for lunch.

It happened so often that Gibbs and Jenny had already been accustomed to setting an extra plate or two, when meal times came. Ziva was a foreign student, and her father expected her to survive on her own. Whenever they went to her place, she would cook special delicacies and such for them. Kate's parents were never around, so going over meant instant noodles and sandwiches. So, of all the places to go, the trio could most likely be found at his house.

"Stop googling, Tony." He blinked and saw her smirking at the book, before turning her grin towards him.

"It's ogling. And I wasn't." He said stubbornly, and turned back to his game.

"Yes, you were. Don't lie." Came her steady and confident voice. "You've been staring at me every few minutes for a while now."

"Wha-"

"Every time you shift your body, there will be some leaves that fall down on me. "

"How do you know if that wasn't just because of the wind?"

"Your game ended a few minutes ago, and you still haven't restarted the game yet."

"Damn." He gave himself a head slap and heard Ziva chuckle softly below him.

"It's getting late. We should get started on our homework, yes?" He looked down and she was already standing up, book in hand, and checking her watch.

"I've got my science research that's due next period, but I can do it later."

"Now, Tony. Or I'm leaving."

"Weak threat, Zi. But alright, I'll do it." He commented, as he slid down the tree as easily as he climbed up.

"That's why it works." She mumbled, following him back into the house.

###

One minute they were laughing at their little joke, and the next, he heard a clash when the phone was dropped, and a gunshot. Then, all was quiet.

"Kate? Kate? Are you okay? Kate, please answer me!" He shouted into the phone. All he heard was a grunt and the sound of dragging something heavy, and then a muffled plop, before the line was cut. Most likely, the phone was stepped on. "Crap."

Tony darted down the hallway, leaving a confused Ziva in his room. He hammered on the pale door in front of him, silently begging that his sister wasn't blasting music at this time. His prayers were answered when a very grouchy Abby opened the door. Her expression immediately changed when she saw the fear in his eyes. "What happened, Tony?"

He pushed past her into her room and for once, she didn't argue or fight back. "Please, can you trace the last number I dialed? The phone is probably dead, but could you get a location of the nearest cell tower or something?"

She glanced at the number shown on his screen.

"That's Kate's number, isn't it? What's going on, Tony? Is she in some sort of trouble?" Abby pulled her brother out of a worried trance as he shook his head.

"No time for that now, Abs. I'm sorry. Could you please run the trace?"

"Okay, I'll take that as a 'yes'. Don't worry about her Tony, she can handle whatever life brings her."

"It's not life that I'm worried about." He said as he stared at the screen while Abby typed faster that she had ever did before.

"Tony? Abby? What's going on?" Jenny's voice filtered through the door frame. The sudden knock making both Abby and Tony jump slightly. "Ziva is getting worried."

Tony quickly put his finger to his lips as a sign to Abby, and she placed her thumb and index finger against the side of her mouth, mimicking the 'lock up and throw away the key' action. "We're fine, Jenny. I just wanted to take Ziva somewhere new as a surprise." He nodded to her politely and left.

He almost dragged Ziva out of his house. She had only managed to say "Tony, what the heck is-", before she was pushed out of his room as he grabbed his things and pulled her out the door.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••

They arrived in half the time with Ziva behind the wheel. The street they got out on was eerily quiet. It spoke of the apparent bloodshed that had occurred earlier. They cautiously approached the back alley with a sense of fear for what they might see.

"You all right, Tony?" Ziva paused just as they were about to turn the corner, to ask him. "Yes. Let's just get this over with." He said sullenly. This was the first time she had ever seen him so serious, so she figured that it would be wrong to cheer him up in this situation.

Their original gruesome expectations were fell short by the emptiness of the alley. It was not long before Ziva noticed some scuff marks on the wall and with Tony's help, they soon uncovered a massive bloodstain behind and on the back of the dumpster. Tony began searching the garbage bags against the opposite wall, while Ziva nearly barfed at the stench when she lifted the lid off the dumpster.

"Tony? I found the body. It's not Kate." She turned to him, and spotted him frowning over another dark spot on the ground.

"You're not gonna like this, then." He turned around and raised up the broken mobile phone.

###

It wasn't supposed to be like this. He had never killed an innocent in cold blood before and now that status had changed. He looked at his senior partner, whose head was bashed against the wall. There was blood gushing out of the hole in his head. He won't last long, that's for sure. He then spared a glance at the body of the young girl he had just shot. The bullet had gone straight through her head, and her phone was lying on the floor beside her. She was innocent. He shouldn't have killed her; but why, why had she tried to stop them? It was a simple task. Take the little girl and get out. So simple that even a rookie like him would get chosen for the job.

He had only been doing this for a few months, just to earn enough cash to get him by, and some left over in case his half-sister got hounded by their father for money. She was already working a few part-time jobs. She would kill him if she found out what he did.

He hadn't expected it to end up like this. With his partner bleeding out in the alley, and the clock counting down until he was supposed to call in, with the kidnappee already in hand. "Are you alright?" He shook his partner's lifeless body and wasn't surprised when he found no pulse.

He had to think rationally. He had to get rid of the body. His partner's first. Because the gun shot wound in the girl would give up the gun he had, and he would get caught. He couldn't afford that.

He lifted his partner's body and kicked off the lid of the dumpster. Just then, he heard a soft voice sounding through the phone. "Kate? Kate? Are you okay? Kate, please answer me!" He froze for a millisecond before quickly shoving the body into the container. He immediately stomped on the phone, snapping it into half. At least he managed to buy some more time before the cops get the trace.

He scooped up the girl's body and placed it into trunk of the getaway car. Then, he ran back and used his back to push the dumpster to cover up the bloodstained wall, and took out a few bags of trash to put over the blood on the floor. He had to cover up as much evidence as possible, to stall them.

The next thing he did was to take out the bullets and scatter them over a large body of water, and change his clothes. His old clothes would need to be burnt when he got back. He kept glancing at his trunk every few minutes. The guilt of keeping the body eating at him. Maybe it'd disappear with time, but at this moment, he decided to stop the car.

She was innocent. He pulled out the body bag, and calmly placed it on a secluded park bench at the far corner of the park where almost no one except the cleaners would know about. It gave him a few hours to get rid of the rest of the evidence before heading back to the meeting place. He needed to give her family and friends restitution by letting them seeing her body. It was only right. Maybe if the mafia had allowed him that small mercy, he might have turned out differently.

He turned on the ignition and quickly drove off, with a phone to his ear.

###

The sirens got louder and louder as a few cars swung round the corner to stop at the start of the alleyway. Tony nudged Ziva, who was absent-mindedly leaning her head against his neck, a few tears silently trailing their way down her cheeks. She reluctantly lifted her head away from him, and he pulled his arm from around her waist. She quickly wiped off any evidence of her shed tears from her face, and fixed her hair. They both stood up and dusted the dirt off their clothes from the floor of the alley.

"Oh my god, Tony, Ziva. What happened?" Jenny gasped in shock when she saw the blood on the floor.

"What the hell were you thinking, you two? Running off to a crime scene without anyone's knowledge! You could have been killed!" Gibbs immediately head slapped the two of them equally hard, making Tony wince slightly, and Ziva avoid his gaze.

"Tony! Ziva! Thank God you're alright! Did you find her?" Abby suddenly came rushing up to them and enveloped them in a hug.

"Nope. Sorry Abs. But there are two blood stains, so there's a chance that.." Tony trailed off at the end, not wanting to continue.

"She might be alive, or that the killer moved her body someplace else." Ziva finished for him in her normal voice, not even a waver in her tone.

"Ziva, how can you be so unaffected and cold? She's your best friend!" Abby said while pacing the floor impatiently. She couldn't believe that Ziva wasn't reacting at all to her friend's possible murder. Tony, she understood, he had an image to uphold, but Ziva?

"When are these forensic guys gonna be done? They're so slow! I bet I could do their jobs at twice their speed and have better accuracy."

Tony was about to say something to Ziva, but stopped short when she flinched at his touch. He understood that she needed her walls so that she wouldn't hinder the process of finding the killer, but she could have acted just a little bit more sympathetically. He also understood that right now, what she needed was a quiet place where she could be alone, for her to make peace with herself and let it all out. That couldn't be done there, with Gibbs and everyone staring at them, expecting them to answer.

So, he grabbed Ziva's hand and pulled her away when the adults weren't looking. He didn't let go even when she struggled hard against him. He did let go when she threw elbowed him in the stomach, but they were already far enough away. He doubled over slightly, wincing in pain. When he looked up again, she was frowning over him, but she didn't leave.

"You've got about 8 minutes before the adults find that we're gone, and we have to get back." Tony turned away and walked behind the corner, giving her the privacy she needed. He could swear that he heard a soft sob, and wanted so badly to go back and hug her. Sadly, he knew that if he did, it would be a sign of sympathy and she would hate him for it. She would maybe never even trust him enough to cry in front of him again. She was quiet after that, but he knew it was just because she knew how to cry without making a sound.

When Tony turned his back and walked around the corner, Ziva secretly thanked him for knowing just what she needed. He understood that she was not just being a cold hearted person, that she had her reasons and did not push her for them.

She let her tears flow with a small sob which she tried to muffle by covering her mouth. She spent the rest of the time in silence, allowing the wave of sadness to wash over her as she thought about the times they shared and how that would never be able to happen again. It was her way to saying goodbye to her friend in spirit, so that she wouldn't need to be so emotional when she saw the body, and she could find the killer instead.

"Ziva, time's up. We have to go. Sorry. " She felt Tony's hand on her shoulder as he used his other hand to take hers, and pull her up.

"It's okay. I was finished." She gave him a weak smile as he wiped a few stray tears from her face, and lead her back to the crime scene.

###

So...what did you think? Too long? Too short? Too OOC? Too downplayed? Good? Not good enough? Bad? Want more Tiva scenes? Want more McAbby? Want more Gibbs and Ziva scenes? The list goes on.

Please let me know what you think about this chapter so the next one would be more enjoyable for you:D If you have any other suggestions for the story, feel free to tell me! Theres a good chance that i'll incorporate your ideas;D

Thanks for reading!

~Lianna


	3. Chapter 3 Pretending

Circumstances-3

Hello Readers;) I just wanna thank you guys AGAIN for being awesome and reading my story. I'm having exams now, so it might be a while for me to be able to go online and publish this. And Yes, I'm already going to end my hiatus in a bit. I think I'm taking way too long to write, and the extra pressure might just spur me on faster;) By the time I post this, however, I think I would have ended my hiatus, and started posting again. I should get back to studying... See you guys later;)

Okay, I know that it's pretty sudden for me to update this again, but I just want to say again, that I don't know how regularly I can update this. So, bear with me, okay? Thanks! Enjoy this chapter:3

Disclaimer- I wish. I'm just playing around with the characters:)

Chapter 3- Pretending

###

"Sorry, Gibbs. Ziva had to use the head, and I didn't want her to get lost so I accompanied her." Tony lied smoothly to Gibbs when the older man asked him where he and Ziva ran off to. She nodded her head in agreement when Tony explained to him. Gibbs knew that they had done anything but that, but decided that it was probably something that they needed, so he let it slide.

It was a rare sight to see Tony silent for such a long time. He wouldn't even accept any humor thrown at him from anyone, nor would he respond to any playful barbs from Ziva or even Abby. Gibbs rarely showed any affection towards his son, but he placed his palm on his shoulders and patted his back comfortingly.

This was not the first time she was being questioned like this, and it certainly would not be her last. It was, however, the first time one of best friends was murdered, and she was being treated like a suspect. She repeated the story from her point of view, without putting in too much detail, ignoring the investigator's probes for more information.

He'd never know that even at her young age, she had been about to volunteer for Mossad because she already had the skills. At least, that was before her father sent her to the USA to watch out for her half brother, Ari. He came to visit her sometimes, but she was mostly on her own.

The officer knew that he was not getting anything out of her, and let her go, deciding to focus on her counterpart.

Tony was decidedly quiet when the two officers hauled him into the interrogation room. It was his first time being questioned in this official manner. The closest he ever got was being summoned to Principal Vance's office.

The moment the officer started asking him questions about his alibi and such, he started making smart comebacks and answers. It was just a reflex that he had picked up when he got nervous or scared. He could almost imagine his father headslapping him into tomorrow because of it.

Soon enough, the officer got frustrated and started making threats. Tony wanted to roll his eyes. He had not done anything at all, so those threats were futile. For officers, they really were kind of stupid to be wasting their time interrogating him, when they could be out there catching the killer.

###

"You've got two great kids in there."

"I know."

"These are the kind that don't crack under pressure. They're special. You know, if you were still under NCIS, they would be great agents to have."

"But I'm not."

"Sir, can't you let them go? They're victims, not suspects."

"Sorry ma'am. We're just doing our jobs, and it's our job to check every possible lead. We'll release them after we're done, which won't be long now. They look like they're doing a great job at handling everything, as I was just telling your husband."

"That's exactly how they handle everything." Jenny said, and turned back to watching the cameras in the holding room. The officer seemed a bit confused at her statement, but decided not to act on anything. He, instead, tapped on the communication mic and told the guards to let them go.

The two kids were seated side by side, eyes focused on the table in front of them. Tony's hand was on Ziva's arm, and she let him perform that small act of comfort, which said a lot. Her eyes diverted to the camera every few minutes, as if she was daring them to let her go. When the guard suddenly yanked her up roughly, she fought the urge to kick him in the balls. Tony quickly sensed her tension and came to her side, sliding his hand up and down her back to try and calm her down.

"I'm alright, Tony. Really." She told him softly, when they were in the car and she noticed that his hand was still on her back.

"What if it's more for me than you?" He replied, before turning his hollow gaze to the scenery out of the window. After a minute, he retracted his arm and placed it on his lap. He couldn't help but wonder what happened to Kate's body. He wondered if he would even want to know, or see it. What if her face was so badly disfigured that he could no longer recognize her?

The thought alone gave him a chill because the one thing he promised himself was that he would never let himself forget her, or how she looked like. He suddenly felt a pressure on his hand, and turned to see Ziva's hand resting on his own. Her face was turned away from him, but he could see that her face became slightly colored for a minute, before turning back to her natural shade. He smiled to himself and flipped his palm over so they could link their fingers together, before going back to their original position.

The rest of the ride passed in silence, with the tension in the air slowly giving away to plain sorrow and grief.

###

In the deep silence of the night, a lone man sat at the dining table, drinking his bourbon. His fingers flipped the boat building magazine, his eyes just glazing over the page before turning it over. He repeated the process until a hand gently gripped his arm to prevent him from turning the page.

"Jethro, come to bed, sitting out here alone isn't going to help." The gentle voice of his wife made him turn to her and give a sigh that was filled with regret and loss.

"The kids asleep?" He managed to ask.

"Yes. Ziva's staying over and sleeping in Tony's room. Tim's mother picked him up half an hour ago, and Abby finally managed to stop crying long enough for her to close her eyes. " He looked away, satisfied with her answer.

"They're taking it just as hard as me and you. Probably more, since Ziva and Tony were closest to her, but they're being very mature about it. Maybe that's because they haven't reached the legal drinking age yet, but they'll heal, slowly. And so will you. Let's get some rest, you can go and face the world and their demons tomorrow." Jenny said, before she took his hand to pull him away from the table, using her other hand to take the bottle away and cap it.

"It's not gonna work, Jen. You know they're just acting." Gibbs mentioned just before he entered the bathroom and shut the door, leaving a very solemn Jenny behind, holding the half empty bourbon bottle.

She stared emptily at the starless sky from the kitchen window, and unscrewed the bottle.

###

He couldn't sleep and he knew for a fact that neither could she. If she had been sleeping, she would have snored. However, he evened out his breathing and shut his eyes when he felt the footsteps of his stepmother coming to check on him. He assumed that Ziva had done the same, for the footfalls retreated after a few minutes, and the door was shut once more.

He noticed a change in temperature when the sheet covers lifted, and he felt Ziva cautiously crawl into the bed and settle down beside him. He slowly turned on his side to face her, not wanting to surprise her, but when he did, her eyes were open and looking at him.

"Couldn't sleep?"

"Shut up. Neither could you."

"I wasn't going to say anything. You were pretending to sleep too, then?"

"Yes. I did not want Jenny to worry, she already has enough on her hands with me staying over tonight." She looked down at her fidgeting hands and for once, her walls were down.

"You're not a burden, Ziva. You'll never be a burden. " He reached out and clasped his hands over hers and stroked her hand softly. She gave him a small smile and leaned forward to place her head in the crook of his neck, sliding her hands out of his, and around his waist instead. He wrapped his arms around her back and held her tightly to him. They stayed in that position, drawing on each other's warmth and comfort, for a long time.

The door softly creaked open, and Tony looked up to see a teary eyed Abby clutching the doorframe uncertainly. She didn't say or seem to notice their seemingly compromising position. She just looked lost and forlorn. He lifted his arm from Ziva to gesture for her to join their embrace and she nearly ran over to them. Tony wiped the tears off of her face while Ziva put her arms around Abby in a protective position.

It took a while, but eventually, Abby fell asleep hugging the two older children. Ziva was in the middle of the bed, with Tony on her right, and Abby on the left. Abby had left her arms clinging to Ziva, and she had unintentionally snuggled up to Tony, with his arms around her. They looked almost peaceful when their eyes finally closed, but anyone who looked closer would see that there were tears seeping out from their closed lids.

###

I'm gonna end here for now:) I thought it was a suitable place to end for the time being, you know, before I throw them into some more trouble? :) keke.

Please let me know what you think by leaving a review! Oh, and I have another request. If you think I'm going out of character, or I made a mistake with my characters, say put the wrong guy in the wrong place? Could you let me know? It would be really helpful. Thanks:)

Until next time,

~Lianna


	4. Chapter 4 Waiting

Circumstances-4

Author's note: Hello everyone! It's been a while hasn't it? I'm writing this before my literature exam. I'm really counting on this test to pull up my average ._. I apologize for any weird mistakes because I didn't have time to check/reread this. My schedule has been CRAZY, so I don't know when I can post the next chapter. But I promise that I AM writing it:) I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer- consider that if I ever write an episode of NCIS, all of Tony/Ziva's love interests, other than themselves, would be killed in unknown circumstances. Not so sure you want me on your writing team now, aren't you?

Chapter 4- Waiting

###

"Abby, if you keep pacing the floor like that, you're gonna need some new tiling soon."

"Tim, now's not the time for humor!" All three heads turned to the younger boy, who didn't know how to react.

The room lapsed into a tense silence again as the children strained against the door, attempting to hear the discussion downstairs.

"What do you mean? Why was the body moved from the original scene? Why can't your people do anything about it?" The frenzied voice of Kate's mother drifted in through the door.

"We've been doing our best. You just have to trust that we are doing everything we can to make sure we find your daughter's killer." The calm voice of the policeman was harder for the rest to hear, but Ziva picked it up easily.

"What about forensics? Have they found anything yet?" It was Jenny's turn to question him.

"We're shorthanded at the moment ma'am. There's a lot of backlot so we haven't gotten the results yet." The policeman's voice wavered slightly as he apologized.

"Stupid people! I managed to trace the broken phone within minutes with a computer that belongs with the dinosaurs, and those people that have the newest hardware can't even work fast enough to help our friend!" Abby said, with much frustration.

She crossed her arms and retreated to the corner of the room to brood with her favorite stuffed hippo, Bert. The trio looked at one another, expecting one of the others to either go and comfort her, or go downstairs and speak their minds. Eventually, Tim drew the short straw and lost the staring match, and he went over to sit with Abby.

Ziva and Tony went down the stairs and were surprised by Gibbs, who had been waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs. "I was wondering when Abby or Ziva finally managed to convince you to come down. Turns out Abby won, then." The two glanced at each other before speaking.

"I think Abby should go and help the team in their forensics. She's like, a genius when it comes to those stuff."

"Gibbs, I want to request that Tony and I be allowed to assist in the investigation. The police said that they were shorthanded, did they not?"

Gibbs looked at the two teenagers, who may one day become the country's future law enforcement. They were looking at him excitedly, with the same sparkle in their eyes that he used to have when he worked for NCIS. How could he say no to them?

###

"Ziva, I think you should go back to school."

"You do not get to decide what is best for me, Tony."

He gave her a half hearted glare in response to her deflection. It had been three days since the cops had 'closed' the case, or so they said. The agency had allowed them to assist with research and coffee runs, much like any newbie intern who didn't know too much about anything. The final conclusion was that it was a random gang killing, because they could not find the weapon, or any other kind of evidence that could bring up any new leads. To say the kids were disappointed, was an understatement.

"You shouldn't be sitting here everyday. It's not good for you to be alone all the time." Ziva looked up to see Tony standing over her. She sighed when she knew she had been caught.

"First of all, I do not simply sit here everyday. I am trying to piece together what went through her mind when it happened. And secondly, I like being alone." She shifted slightly in her position, not enough to change her posture, but enough to make it clear that he would not be in trouble if he sat down with her.

"She was scared, but she wanted to do what she thought felt right. Nothing else mattered. The stubborn girl. And no Ziva, you don't." He accepted the silent invitation, and slid down next to her.

"I meant when the bullet hit. I wonder what went through her mind. Was it regret, or pain, or simply reluctance?" She had a faraway look on her face. That alone scared him. She never showed her lines of weakness. She was always strong and alert; but now, as she was lost in thought, Tony realised that there were a lot of things he didn't know about her.

"Ziva... Stop thinking about that. C'mere."

She sighed and let him pull her head against his chest. Tony had discovered that Ziva had been skipping classes a few days ago and when he found her staring at the brick wall of the dumpster, he began trying to coax her out of it. He was the kind of person who never looked reality in the face, and always took things with a pinch of salt. Therefore, being where the shooting happened on a regular basis was slightly unnerving for him.

"Zi, come on, let's go some place else. Don't just sit here. You won't solve anything just sitting here doing nothing."

"There's nothing TO do, Tony. She's dead, and we can't do ANYTHING about it."

She sunk into his embrace unwillingly after a few minutes of him trying. He tried to pull her up, and she allowed him to do so, without attempting to kick him.

"You could try going back to class." Tony gave her a pleading smile that made her want to give in to whatever he wanted. However, she hid her emotions behind a stone wall and he gave up trying to get a reaction out of her after a while.

"Zi... You can't hide here forever." He knew that she had been having troubles, but she was in a different grade from him, and he couldn't do anything about it. Plus, she refused to talk to him about it. He knew that it was another of her defenses that she used, so he knew better than to push.

"I am not hiding."

The finality in her tone meant that the conversation was over. Tony sighed once more, with disappointment, and left her standing alone.

She would call him when she was ready.

###

As it turns out, she ended up calling Gibbs first. Well, not exactly. She got sent to the principal for being truant on too many occasions, and her older brother was unable to make it. This was the one occasion that she actually felt fearful, she had seen the way Tony was headslapped. She let out a small groan when Gibbs walked in, ten minutes earlier than her estimated time. He shot her quick look, that made her look away with embarrassment.

"Mr Gibbs, I'm so glad you could make it. Please have a seat." Principal Vance gestured to the seat next to Ziva as he continued leafing through some papers. Ziva was getting impatient, and started shooting annoyed glances at Vance, until he looked up with a professional smile.

"Mr Gibbs, I apologize for the wait. Thank you for being the acting guardian for Ziva. I have some important issues to discuss today, and I'm glad that I will get to discuss them with a responsible adult." He said, without sparing as much as a look towards Ziva as he blantantly insulted her brother. He knew she was seething inside, but she dismissed it outwardly with a sharp hiss.

"Now, I can see that Ziva's a good kid. Her academic scores are always in the top 10% of the cohort, and her sports records are off the charts. However, I'd like to remind you that this school pays attention to the character development of each and every one of our students. Being reprimanded and punished for truancy doesn't look good in your record. " Gibbs shot Ziva a few glances, but they were met with blank stares.

"So, I'd like to make a proposition. I let all of this pass, because I want to give you another chance, and you will attend regular sessions with our counselor, on top of that, I want your class attendance to be reach at least 98%." Ziva looked like she was going to jump up and strangle him to death, damn the consequences. Gibbs quickly argued that 98% was a little far fetched, and that 80% would be more reasonable. Vance, however, was persistent. He refused anything below 90%, and so they had to make do with it.

"I am sorry, Gibbs. I did not mean to cause you any trouble." She said as they were walking to the car.

"Never apologize, it's a sign of weakness." He answered. Ziva was contented with that answer, and allowed a peaceful silence to settle over them. It didn't last long, though.

"I think you should go back to class." Gibbs said. She shot him a bewildered look, which he shrugged to. "No one said you can't think about the case DURING class. The principal won't get on your case as long as you go to class."

She was not surprised that he could read her just as well as Tony could. She was surprised that not only was he okay with it, he gave an out to her situation. Although she shouldn't have been shocked, she knew as well as everyone, that Gibbs had formed a bond with Kate long before she had arrived. It was no wonder that he encouraged her to figure out what happened.

He dropped her off at her house, where he got out of the car too. At first, she was confused. Was it customary American tradition to invite people for dinner when you haven't even cooked yet? She finally understood when she saw a backpack lying in front of her door. Gibbs immediately zeroed in on an open door of one of her neighbor's apartments. Ziva followed curiously.

True enough, they found Tony chatting up one of her neighbors that was relatively closer to his age than her other ones. Wendy, her neighbor, was teaching him how to play the piano. Gibbs marched straight in, told him to say goodbye, and then dragged him out of the house and headslapped him.

"Ow! I guess I deserved that, but Ziva didn't come back, and I was getting hungry. Wendy saw how long I was waiting there, and she offered me some food. Everything just went from there!" Tony rubbed his head and winced when he was met with the icy glares from both Gibbs and Ziva.

"Then tell me, how did you get from being a grade 5 pianist, to playing kindergarten songs?" Gibbs argued. Tony shrugged, but evidently got worried when he knew he was found out. He covered that well with a cheeky grin. "Well, I guess SOME things were exaggerated. She DID say I was a fast learner-ow!"

Although he anticipated the second headslap, he still jumped when Gibbs' palm landed on the back of his head. "Shutting up now, Gibbs." He said awkwardly when his father's attention travelled back to Ziva. "Take care of yourself, Ziver." He said, before walking off towards the stairwell.

"See you tomorrow, Ziva. Meet at the diner for lunch?" He asked, while his eyes followed Gibbs' back so he wouldn't lose track of him.

"I do not think I can make it. I have a counseling session after school. Sorry." She replied as she unlocked her door.

"Mandatory?"

"Principal Vance has requested for me to attend them." She replied hesitantly. She did not really like the idea of her telling Tony that she had been summoned to the principal's office, along with his father, although he was bound to find out soon enough.

"Alright. I'll see you when I see you!" He called as he began to run down the stairs. She smiled slightly, this guy could not resist the opportunity of quoting from one of his favorite movies. Her smile dimmed slightly when her eyes trailed towards the direction of Wendy's home. She didn't know how to feel about Tony flirting openly with her, but then again, who was she to say anything?

She was just the only girl that didn't manage to attract Tony's attention. Apparently, he was about to ask Kate out the moment he saw her, until Tim needed help. He would never know it, but she had really liked him. Wendy obvious got his attention fast, since he got her to open up her apartment to him after just a few minutes. She would never be able to be a part of his life like they could.

She was definitely not looking forward to the next day's activities.

###

This was more like a filler chapter, and i apologize for the crappy ending, I didn't really know how to end it. Hope you enjoyed this chapter though, it sure was fun writing it;) i need to go and study now, so bye!

please read and review! And please let me know if you like it, or if you have any suggestions!

Until next time,

~Lianna


	5. Chapter 5 Secrets

Circumstances-5

Hey guys! Looks like I'm back again for another chapter:) I hope this chapter is longer than the previous one. Like I said, I apologize for the shorter chapters, but please understand that I don't have a lot of time to write, so I just do it when I can. Thanks to everyone who read this story, and SPECIAL THANKS to those who reviewed:) Every review means alot to me, especially since I'm fairly new to fanfiction. Other than my strange Author's note, HAPPY READING:D

Disclaimer: Oh yeah. I own NCIS. I own Disney too. How did I win them? Oh I won them in a lottery. AS IF. I have fanfiction to keep me company;)

Chapter 5 Secrets

###

Her day had passed slowly, adding to her misery. She had not been able to concentrate on anything because of the numerous distractions present in her classroom.

To make matters worse, she didn't get to see Tony at all, because his breaktime was different from hers that day. Not having Tony to cheer her up made her more grumpy and irritable than usual.

The counseling session was horrible, only because she completely refused to cooperate. Every attempt to converse was met by hard rebuttal and dismissal in general. The only question which she answered properly was about her name. She was just glad when the day was over, and she could just go home and start on her homework.

They had piled her with homework from the classes that she had missed over the past week. That included projects that were due within two days. She almost picked up her phone to ask Kate for help, but then she realized that she could not. Her stubbornness prevented her from calling Tony, even though she knew he could help her more than anyone else could.

She didn't have a chance to do anything, though. Before she knew it, she heard stones being thrown at her window and she was about to throw them back at the culprit when she spotted Tony waving at her from downstairs. She rolled her eyes and laughed before she could stop herself. He was always acting out corny scenes from movies anyway. She did not want to give him too much attention, so she turned away and shut the window; but she left her front door open.

"Geez woman. Do you know how hard it is to hit the right window? The least you could do was wave back." Tony said when he strolled into the room. She pointedly ignored him and continued getting the food out of the fridge.

"Ziva, I brought food. Take it. I know you haven't eaten lunch yet." She turned around to see him waving a plastic bag with a couple of sandwiches. She finally smiled at him and accepted the food.

"So, I take it you had a bad day because I wasn't there to annoy you? Ha! I told you, you are totally gonna miss me when I graduate!" He made a casual joke and grinned when Ziva's response was to whack him in the shoulder.

"I will not miss you, Tony. I will be grateful that you do not distract me anymore. Unfortunately, I think you still wish to come over everyday, yes?" Ziva asked as she sat down on the couch and Tony made himself at home next to her.

"You guessed it! I'm not gonna let you out of my sight!" Tony flashed her a bright smile before turning his attention to the television set in front of them. "So, you do have cable, right?"

"Tony, I do not have time for a job, and I have always eaten takeout for meals. What part of my life gave you THAT impression?"

"Oh. Well then, it's settled. You're coming over at least once a week for movie night!"

"What?" Ziva let out a half chuckle, half yelp, and burst into laughter along with Tony. "Tony, you know I have no interest in those kinds of trivial matters."

"Zi, you're going to join me on those movie nights even if I have to come here and drag you with me." He ignored her incredulous look, picked up his bag and closed the door behind him.

The moment the door shut, Ziva leaned against the back of the couch and grinned. In that few minutes, her horrible day had brightened up considerably, and she was now looking forward to future Friday nights.

###

Before Tony could even put his bag onto the floor, Abby had grabbed his hand, and was dragging him towards her room. She quickly bolted the door after him and pushed him towards her computer.

"Tony, guess what?" She looked so excited that he decided to humor her.

"What?"

"No fair. I can't tell you, you're supposed to guess!" Abby pouted and crossed her arms and stared at him.

"Abby... You dragged me here before I could even take a shower after a long day. What do you expect?" Tony gave her a tired look that caused her to soften, and she smiled back him after a bit of consideration.

"Okay, but you owe me a game!" She pointed her finger directly at him, who agreed, laughing.

"I managed to pinpoint the weapon that fired the killshot. The only reason there was a red flag which I noticed, was because it had been involved in previously unsolved murders. The locations range wide from DC to the Middle East." She paused to take in her brother's shocked expression, until he signalled her to continue.

"I can't tell you anything significant about the case though. I don't have enough clearance. If you can find the weapon, I might be able to help you." She tried to add in an element of hope for him.

No one else but her knew that he was secretly very disturbed that he could not catch Kate's killer. Not even Ziva. Everyone always assumed that he was already at peace with it, because of all the jokes he makes. It was the contrary, to be exact.

In fact, the only reason she found out about his sleepless nights and worries, was because she caught him one night. She had had a nightmare, and wanted to get something to drink. When she went down, she noticed that the front door was unlocked. She decided to check it just to be sure, and found Tony sitting under the tree in the backyard. He was looking at photographs that he had kept in a box, that she had never seen before.

When she came closer, she heard him speak. He was talking to the photos! At first, Abby thought her brother had finally gone nuts, and she could have his room; but then, she realised who he was talking to when he said her name out loud. Kate. He had looked up just then, but ignored her. Instead, he just leaned closer to the photo and whispered something inaudible, before putting them away and asking her what was wrong.

He gently nudged her in the direction of the house, and she reluctantly went back. She turned around and saw him standing right behind her, but the box was already hidden where she would never be able to find it. "Go back to sleep, Abby. I'll get your water and meet you in your room, okay?" Tony had said after he saw her yawning.

She never once questioned him about the photos, or whatever happened that night, and he never brought it up. It was their little secret. There were many things that the two siblings didn't agree on, but ultimately, they loved each other dearly and trusted the other with their life.

There was a time, when she didn't like the idea of Tony bringing Ziva over all the time. Kate and her had always been close, and bringing a new girl sort of disrupted their balance. That period of time soon passed, and now, she treated Ziva as if they were sisters. Plus, Tim got to come over more often and play with her too. He was always a bit shy around girls especially, but she knew that he was going to grow up to be a really smart guy.

Ever since the investigation into Kate's shooting began, she and Tony had been secretly digging information up on their own. So far, ballistics from the gun had led them towards one of the gang circles. Tony had a hunch that the infrequent times that Ziva had actually been seen with her brother indicated that he may have something to do with it. Therefore, telling Ziva, was not an option.

Ziva had not offered any information about herself, nor her family to her, and she had not questioned it. All she could hope for, was that her brother was closer to her, and he may be able to solve the case if she could not; and hopefully, all their relationships would still remain intact after that.

###

Tony rung the doorbell, and waited for Ziva to open the door. She gave him an icy glare for interrupting her studies for 'movie night', but secretly, she was glad for the distraction. He didn't bother waiting for her "Come in", and just walked right past her into the living room. Some people would consider his actions rude, but his friends would take it that he knew them well enough to do that without getting strangled.

"Ziva, I take it that cleaning your place was never a priority on your list?" He said, as he nearly tripped over some of her clothes on the floor. She rolled her eyes and sat on the couch as Tony went over to her DVD player.

"I clean the house on weekends, Tony, and I'm not going to waste more time than needed on this, so you'd better start the show." Tony quickly did as he was told, and grabbed the snacks and drinks that he had brought over.

Halfway through the movie, however, he needed to take a leak from all the soda he had drunk. It did not really matter to him, since he had seen the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy a million times already. Ziva seemed to be enjoying 'The fellowship of the Ring', and he didn't want to disturb her, so he just went to the toilet quietly.

When he came back, he noticed that the movie was set on pause, and that Ziva wasn't at her seat anymore. He was suspicious at first, until he heard her voice, accompanied by another male's, in the kitchen. He knew that he should leave before he wore out his welcome, so he took out his disc and placed it back in his bag. By then, the two of them had walked into the living room. Upon seeing him, the man suddenly spoke in a harsh tone to Ziva in Hebrew, to which she glared at him defiantly, and spat Hebrew angrily back at him.

Tony quickly unlocked the front door and slipped outside. Before he could get far, he felt something pull him back. Ziva was tugging on his shirt, and he noticed that her gaze had softened considerably compared to the way she was glaring at the man before.

"I am sorry, Tony. Next week, I will go to your house to watch the movie to make it up to you, yes?" Ziva actually seemed hesitant of his answer, so he gave her a reassuring smile and a nod. "I know you have company. I don't wanna keep you, so bye Ziva. See you." She gave him another apologetic smile, and shut the door.

He couldn't help the thought that crossed his mind about the man that came over. Could he be Ziva's boyfriend? Although he knew it was highly improbable, he countered that she was acting a little different lately. At this point, he actually wished for his father to headslap him right there and then, and get him out of this ditch he dug for himself.

###

HEBREW IN ITALICS.

Ziva noticed when Tony got off the couch and headed for the restroom. The weight of the couch shifted, and she felt slightly more conscious that she was alone. She had to admit, this movie was certainly nicer than it seemed. Tony did have good taste in choosing movies.

The front door clicked, and she jumped off the couch with a gun that was previously hidden in her mess of cushions. She merely sighed in frustration when she saw who it was. "Ari, what are you doing here?"

"Ziva, this is my house too. Why are you watching this American entertainment? You should be helping our father." Ari said. He paused at the door, noting the unfamiliar bagpack, along with the movie that Ziva immediately paused.

"Ari, as you can see, today I have a friend over. This stopped being your home a long time ago, and you cannot order me around as you wish." She said, trying hard to hold back her frustration and emotions from her half brother. She gestured him for her to follow her into the kitchen to continue their conversation, so that Tony would not be as shocked to see him there.

"Ziva, you are not permitted to speak that way to me. Who do you think you are? One of these Americans?" His voice began to rise, but she stood her ground. She was not afraid of him. She had been trained since young, how to control her fears. Although, her already worn thin patience for her half brother, was just about to snap.

"Brother, you have to stop looking down on Americans. If you pay attention, you may find that you can learn something from them. " She said, still standing firm even though she knew that she could get into a lot of trouble for this.

"You've gone soft, Ziva. America has made you soft! You should be sent back to where you belong." His statement made her blood boil. He had no right to say anything about her, when he has not even seen her in months!

"At least America has not made me lose my responsibility." She responded coldly. She walked out of the kitchen, knowing that Tony had heard enough to get the message. She found him standing over his bag, about to leave, when Ari made a comment. "This kid is your FRIEND? Ziva, he is such a weakling. He would be better off if you just cut him off and leave him with a bunch of whores."

"Just by that statement, I know that he is a much better man than you'll ever be." She snapped at him, stunning her brother into silence.

She seized the oppurtunity to go and say goodbye to Tony. She felt guilty that Tony had been forced to leave because her brother showed up unannounced. She had become too used to Ari sneaking into the house when he thought she was asleep, so she was surprised to find that he broke routine. There was always a reason, like when he needed to get medical supplies if he was hurt. She did not come out and ask him. Instead, she stayed in her room and caught up on her reading.

Her head told her that Tony would not be mad at her for 'ditching' him that night, but her conscience was eating at her. It felt worse when she recalled what Ari said about him. He gave her a reassuring smile, and it calmed her down more than she would admit. This just proved to her that Ari was wrong about him.

"Ziva, you are here to assist me. If you are unwilling to do so, I will call our father and tell him that you are not fit for life in America." Ari said in English, the moment she shut the door. His Israeli accent was thicker than Ziva's, but had a menacing edge to it.

"Brother, you do not control me, and neither does Father." She said calmly.

"I need your help, Ziva. The police are sniffing around, and it might jeopardize the operation. You have to throw them off." He asked as politely as he could. Ziva did not like the sound of it, because it would consist of lying to all her friends, but she did not really have a choice. She had always been trained to be Mossad before anything else.

"You have to discuss this with Father and get his consent before you even think of me helping you." She said with a tone of finality. She turned away and briskly headed to her room. "Good night, Ari. Lock the door on your way out."

She waited up in bed, until she finally heard the front door open and close a few hours later. It was then that she allowed her head to fall back on the pillow, and sleep to overtake her.

###

It wasn't a cliff hanger so don't kill me! Haha. I hope you liked this chapter, since I wrote this in one shot. Therefore, my mind should be in fairly good order, and I think my chapter should be too;) I am actually quite satisfied with this chapter, but I haven't exactly built everything up yet, so please bear with me!

Reviews please? I'd love to know what you think!

Thanks for reading everyone;)

~Lianna


	6. Chapter 6 Illusions

Circumstances-6

A/N: Hi:) Alright, I'm back again for a new chapter:) good news? bad news? Hope all of you have been having a good week, and it's the weekend so you can party! Haha. I can't, because of my exams, but I can write more:) okay a proper Author's note will be at the end of the chapter, so enjoy!

Disclaimer- don't own it.

Chapter 6 Illusions

###

Gibbs received a call from the police a few weeks later. They had traced the path of Kate's killer from the alleyway to the park. Along the way, they managed to find the murder weapon.

Something about the whole thing seemed suspiciously easy, so he asked about the manpower and resources that they used. His answer was as he expected. The police were no longer in charge of the case. They had been asked to hand over the case to NCIS. He immediately thanked the officer and put the down the phone. He turned to his wife, who was preparing lunch for the children.

"Jenny, NCIS has no jurisdiction for gang murders." She only half looked up for a brief second, before turning back to her work.

"They do if the victim was the god-daughter of an ex NCIS agent."

"Why did you do that?"

"Jethro, you know that if we leave it to the local law enforcement, the case is never going to get solved. Since I'm still the director of NCIS, I figured I might as well use my other resources to help solve the case."

Her answer seemed to satisfy him for now, which was more than the police had been doing. So, she decided to appreciate the peace in household while she can, because it would all go to hell before she can even blink an eye.

###

Tony came home by himself for the third time that week. He walked up the stairs quickly to put his stuff down after greeting everyone. It was then that Gibbs began to get suspicious and slightly worried.

The family had not seen Ziva in many weeks, when usually, the duo could not be separated for more than twelve hours without missing the other. Although they would never admit themselves, but it was obvious to people around them because they would start acting out after a while. None of their many fights and squabbles lasted more than a few days, and even then, one of them would apologise pretty fast.

Even Jenny noticed the trend and once confronted Tony about it. He had just reassured her that it was just because there had been a huge pile of homework due these few weeks, and that they meet up on weekends. Jenny had let it slide, but Gibbs did not.

Gibbs entered Tony's room quietly and stood behind Tony while he was staring at his twitter page on his laptop. It took a while, but Tony soon tensed up and turned around to stare innocently at him.

"Hey dad, I was just gonna head down after taking a shower." He said, quickly shutting off his laptop and grabbing the towel on his bed.

"I didn't come here to ask about that."

"Ziva? I already told you, nothing's wrong." Tony's attitude immediately went to defensive at the understanding of his father's words.

"I don't need you to tell me something is wrong. I KNOW something's wrong with Ziva, and you're hiding it." Gibbs immediately blocked the exit, and waited for his son to cave in and spill.

"It's nothing to be concerned about. She just told me a few weeks ago that she needed some space for a while. I don't know what's her problem. Whatever it is, she's not talking to me."

"You never saw her on those weekends, did you?"

"No sir. It's been weeks since I last saw her." Gibbs smirked a little at that. He already knew that Tony had been hiding out somewhere during those weekends, although he wasn't quite sure where. It had to have been close to Ziva's house, for him to lie so smoothly, but he chose not to push him any further for now.

###

"Tim! We have to do something! We haven't heard from Ziva in two weeks. TWO WEEKS! No phone calls, no text messages, no emails, no nothing!" Abby paced around in her room, as Tim just looked deep in thought.

"Has any other evidence turned up?" He asked.

"That's the strange part. After the people at NCIS let me look at their lab analysis, I found out that most of the evidence had been tampered with. Now, it seems, every time we're about to get something, the results suddenly say it's not possible. It's just not possible, Tim!" Abby said, while making wide gestures to the photocopied lab results on her table. As he picked it up and read the analysis in more detail, Abby continued.

"I just confirmed that the gun we found WAS the murder weapon, but there was a lot of prints on it. It's like the gun had been used by different people altogether!" She showed him her computer processing the data, and still trying to search for the matching identities to the finger prints. "This guy? Really knows what he's doing."

"Abby, are you actually allowed to do that?" Tim gave her look of skepticism, coming from an excellent computer hacker himself.

"Yes, Timmy. My computer is linked to NCIS directly. They allowed me to have full digress and control over what they do." Abby rolled her eyes but gave him an affectionate smile, like how one smiles at an innocent child.

Just then, the computer beeped and Abby turned around to find that the evidence files were being hacked from a remote place. She quickly released a virus to hit the hacker, but it wasn't strong enough. Tim managed to latch a tracking cookie onto the other person's computer, after trying to remotely stop the hack failed. At the end of it, they could just watch as the hacker swiped away all their evidence reports and files.

"What on earth is going on?" She nearly shouted in frustration. "It's like I said, just before I get something big, like identifying the suspects, the evidence disappears!"

Tim too, was stunned. He had never seen a bug move that fast before, and wiping out specific things. He gave Abby a hug, and started planning on redesigning his defence bot. "Maybe someone is intentionally sabotaging you. What was your last good piece of intel that you have the evidence to prove?"

"I confirmed that our first victim's fingerprints were on the trigger." When Tim gave her a look of surprise, she showed him the screenshots she had printed out before the attack. "I thought I might need it, turns out I was right."

"What if, the hacker was trying to stop you from getting at some specific information?" Tim offered.

"Perhaps. It's more likely that you could have been close to identifying someone. " The two turned in shock at Tony's voice, who only just decided to make his presence known. "What? Don't give me that look. I came when I heard you shouting at your keyboard. You should really learn to lock your door sometimes."

Abby smiled gratefully at him when he closed her door and locked it. "You may be right, Tony. Too bad I can't prove anything, since that stupid hacker took my files."

"What about older records? Do you still have the reports about the check from DC to Middle East? You could cross check them." Tony crossed the room and started her computer again.

"I may have that report, but it's useless without anything to cross check it with." Abby came up behind him and sighed, as she examined the damage done.

"Hey Mcgenius!" Tim turned to look at him in surprise. "Do you know if it's possible that someone could be blocking the files and wiping out evidence in NCIS?"

Tim thought about it for a minute, before speaking with confidence. "Well, I should be able to do it with proper planning, but-"

"That's good enough for me. Now, can you trace where the signal came from?" Tony cut him off, turning his attention to the computer reports on the table instead.

"Oh! I understand what you're getting at. You want to see if we can catch this guy, and then trace him to the reports in the countries and see if his travel record coincides with any of them. I'll get to it then!" Tim said excitedly as Tony took one of the reports and left the room. Tim sat at Abby's desk quietly and stared at the screen.

"Don't worry, Tim. Even if you're caught, Jenny will handle most of the problems. " Abby said, thinking that he was nervous.

"Oh no, I wasn't worried about that. I was wondering if NCIS would be harder to hack compared to the CIA." Tim smiled at her and resumed typing.

Abby didn't even try to hold back her smile.

###

Later that evening, Tony found himself in the elevator of the NCIS headquarters once again that evening. Gibbs had sent him over to meet Jenny after she finished work, and convince her to come home and eat, instead of work all day. He found it strange that the new security guard chuckled and said "Another one of these teenagers" when he saw him. That is, until he saw his name when he signed in. Then, he cleared his throat uncomfortably and let him pass immediately.

The first thought that crossed Tony's mind when he stepped off the elevator was that the bullpen was unusually dark. Almost all the lights were off, except the necessary ones, like the ones near the stairs. As he strolled towards the staircase, he heard the sound of papers fluttering and he stopped and turned around in surprise.

The first thing he noticed was the two embracing bodies that were pressed against a set of drawers in the darkness. He could just barely make out the familiar slim figure that he recognised, as he forced himself to look away. He felt a pang of jealousy in his chest when he heard her gasp and moan. It was definitely Ziva. Her having a new boyfriend certainly explained a lot regarding her unusual behaviour.

Tony widened his stride and tried to walk as far away as possible from them. Unfortunately, as much as he was creeped out by the scene, he knew that if Jenny found out, they would get into deep trouble. So, he turned back and cleared his throat loudly enough for them to hear it. The couple broke apart instantly, and he immediately recognized the guilt and regret in Ziva's brown eyes when she looked at him.

"Tony..." She began, but was cut off by Tony's shake of his head, signalling that he didn't want to hear it.

"I just wanted to let you know that Jenny is going to be coming out soon, so if you wish to stay alive, I suggest you take this downstairs." He said more harshly that he had meant to, turned on his heel and walked away.

"Ziva, are you alright?" Ziva flinched away at the man's touch, and fixated a glare on him.

"Yes. Did you copy the files?" She asked with a measure of coldness in her voice.

"Yes. I managed to get everything before he caught us." He assured her and raised up the microchip for confirmation.

"I will not lie to him if he asks me, Michael." She said, making sure he knew who she was referring to. "Let me say this again. I am only doing this because these are my father's orders. There is nothing but business between us."

"I know, but who said that while we are at it, we are not allowed to mix business with pleasure?" He smirked, and took her hand to lead her out of the building. She followed her partner without making any remarks, but only because his grip was so tight she could barely breathe.

"Tony, did your dad send you?" Jenny asked as she looked up from her computer screen as he walked in to her office. He gave her a bright, answering smile and took her coat off the seat and handed it to her.

"C'mon Jenny, Gibbs orders you to stop working." Tony laughed along with Jenny as she reluctantly shut down her computer for the night. Jenny noticed that he seemed quieter than usual, but figured that he was just tired.

Her husband had been asking Tony to do more errands lately, even though they had more than enough food in the house. It seemed that their household had recently become more deceiving. With Tim disappearing upstairs with Abby every time he came over, Tony mysteriously gone for periods of time, Ziva being absent from their home, and Gibbs acting like he saw all their secrets and he knew all the answers to what was going on, she knew she would have her hands full.

As Tony and Jenny got in the elevator, the first thing he noticed was how dark and quiet the place was, once all the lights were off. He was reminded of what happened, and instead of burdening himself with who, he started pondering about why. A quick thought crossed his mind about the situation and suddenly, he couldn't wait to get home.

###

Sorry for the extreme lack of Tiva interaction in this chapter. The next chapter will have more interaction, I promise. This was more like a filler chapter, which I usually find hard to write, so I apologise if there was a drop in standard. I hope you guys found the chapter alright, though. Please let me know what you think about it!

Also lately, I've noticed that the review count has dropped, even though my story alerts have increased. I really hoped to have at least 3 or 4 reviews per chapter so could you please leave a review? I will do my best to update faster, I promise:) I've already written quite a few chapters ahead :D

I'll try to update soon! Thanks for reading:P

~Lianna


	7. Chapter 7 Glimpses

Circumstances-7

A/N:Hello Um, after some reviews from the previous chapters, I decided to let you guys have a bit more Tiva than I was going to give, since you have given me some nice comments. Okay, this is a little OOC, so...please bear with me? I just thought it was an interesting idea^^

A reply to juli: Ziva was not involved when Kate was killed. She was tasked by her father, after the murder, to prevent her brother from getting found out, a little similar to the TV storyline. As for Michael...did I mention the storyline bears its similarities to the TV show?;)

Disclaimer- I'm a consistent viewer of the show:) So, I am allowed to play with them, yes?

Chapter 7 Glimpses

###

The bell rang and as per usual, as urge of students would run out of the building celebrating their freedom for the day. It was a mad race to see who could escape first, but that's high school. For once though, Anthony Dinozzo was one of the first few people to leave the building. He had done away with his usual routine of waiting for Ziva, and left with some of his guy friends.

Not long after the incident at NCIS, Gibbs allowed him to stop shadowing Ziva, and he had been very grateful. For all he knew, Ziva was the one sabotaging their efforts at finding out who killed his best friend, and if that proved to be true, he would never forgive her.

The group of them went to get some drinks after eating and then headed to a frat party. Tony knew his parents would not approve, but at that time, he was either too drunk to bother, or too busy to care. He met many girls at the party who gave him their number, however drunkenly.

Everyone he saw there reminded him of HER though. He was upset enough at the situation, and it did not help that most of the girls there reminded him of either Kate, or Ziva, and he didn't want to think about either of them for that night.

As the party began winding down, he sat down on the steps of the stairs and took out his phone to input all the numbers he had gotten that night. He glanced at the numerous missed calls that he got from other people. Three from Jenny, two from Abby, and one from Ziva. Gibbs just sent him a text saying he will kick his ass if he didn't get back home.

He sighed and slid his phone shut. When he looked up, he saw a girl about his age with her back turned to him. Her hair was a slightly wavy shoulder length, and a familiar dark brown. Tony could not help but follow her as she made her way through the crowd and outside.

The familiar cold night air hit his face with a blast, and he noticed the slight glow about the girl in front of him, who stopped in her steps. She was facing the road, her hair blowing in the wind. There was no one else out there except for them.

As she turned around slowly to face him, his heart rate quickened and he felt his breath catch in his throat. It was Kate, alive and well. She gave him a sweet smile when she said his name fondly. "Tony. What are you doing?" Of course Tony knew it was an illusion, but he let himself drown in it, since he could control neither his emotions, nor thoughts while he was drunk.

The figure suddenly reached her hand out and stroked his cheeks gently. "I really missed you, Tony. You, and everyone else I left behind." He nearly jumped when he felt her fingertips brush his face. Her touch was warm, human, even. He could not help but lean into it, and felt her chuckle as she put her arms around him. "I loved you, and I'm sorry you never knew that."

"I...loved you too." He managed to make out.

"Don't waste the rest of your life by chasing the wrong girl, when she's actually just standing in front of you." She whispered softly in his ear. "And please don't keep having weird fantasies about me, it's creepy." He chuckled and felt her lips touch his cheek lightly before she pulled away from him.

"Tony!" He heard someone shout. He turned around to see Ziva, in a dark blue dress, standing in front of him. He was not surprised to see her. He had just had a vision of Kate, who told him she loved him, and now Ziva shows up out of nowhere.

"Tony?" She asked again, this time, more gently. "I know you probably are not in the mood to see me, but I had Abby trace your phone because we could not find you." She started toying with her hair that she had obviously spent some time doing. Her usually curly hair had been straightened, and now made her look more mature.

He didn't argue when she accompanied him back to his house, even though they didn't speak a word to each other for the whole length of the journey.

###

Although it was late, Gibbs had no intention of letting Ziva leave his house and disappear, after dropping off a wasted Tony. He knew that the only reason she came back was out of concern for Tony.

She hovered around his room after he shut her out, refusing to leave until he gave an indication that he was alright. It wasn't until Gibbs came out with a strange look and pulled her towards the kictchen, did she willingly move from her spot. He stood there and stared at her silently. Even with the skills of Mossad, she knew she didn't want to avoid the topic at hand.

"This is about the NCIS investigation, yes?" She asked. He gave her a hard look but kept his silence.

"You think I am involved in the sabotage." She stated.

"Not think. KNOW." Gibbs finally replied.

"Tony told you?" She asked, feeling miserable at the situation.

"No. I figured it out from the evidence that Tony accumulated while following you." He said. There was no ounce of emotion in his voice to even suggest to outsiders that the two even knew each other, and the way that they were staring at each other certainly did not do any good either.

"I knew he was tracking me. He left me evidence that pretty much implicated himself." She answered. Gibbs shook his head with a chuckle. "Tony felt guilty. He knows how to hide himself without leaving evidence. You really think that low of him?"

"On the contrary, Tony is one of the people I regard the highest." She said firmly.

"I can tell. Good night, Ziva, and thanks." Gibbs added as he patted her back lightly. He was displeased with the way everything happened, but at the end of the day, he knew she wasn't the direct enemy.

###

Tony woke up with a splitting headache the next day. He sat up in bed, and immediately regretted it. He groaned and lay back down, clutching his head. Then, there was a soft knock that came from his door. He did not want to get up, so he just said "Come in."

His sister walked in holding a glass of water. He smiled and patted her head as she gave it to him. "Tony, I'm not a dog." She said, with fake annoyance. "But how are you feeling?"

"Well, my head feels like there's a guy playing drums, and using my head as one." He told her, and made her smile with sympathy. Abby patted his arm affectionately, and the door opened once again to reveal Gibbs.

"You alright?" He directed the question to Tony, but got Abby's reply.

"No! Ziva came over last night, and you couldn't even let me see her! And now, you expect me to activate some tracker to help you spy on her! Of course I'm not okay!" Abby huffed.

Gibbs rolled his eyes at her tantrum, and pulled out a caf-pow from behind his back. He told the suddenly bright eyed girl to take the drink, as she hugged him tightly. "YAY! Thanks Gibbs! I still need to think about the activating thing, though."

Gibbs silently reached over and took the Caf-Pow drink back from her, unleashing a surprised look and a whine from his daughter. "Alright! I'll do it, I'll do it! Gimme gimme." She said as she reached her hands out to get her precious drink back. When he still held it out of her reach, she paused and thought for a moment. "I'll do it now, okay?" Gibbs chuckled as he handed it back to the girl, who grinned at both of them before waving and leaving the room with a spring in her step.

Gibbs looked at his son, who had remained quiet for the entire conversation, and wondered if he had finally mastered the art of sleeping with his eyes open. "You put a tracking device on Ziva?" Tony asked, out of the blue.

"Yep." Came his quick reply without hesitation.

"Did you find anything yet?" He asked.

"Just about to." He said again. To Tony, this meant that he sensed that Abby was on the verge of discovering something. It was a Gibbs quirk that kept everyone on their toes.

"I wanna know what's going on with Kate, Tony." Gibbs said. Tony looked at him in pure shock. "Is she happy now?"

"How di-" Tony attempted to ask his father how he knew about his 'experience', but was cut off by his answer.

"You kept repeating her name when I put you to bed last night." He answered without hesitation.

"She's...doing well. She said she misses us." He said and remembered the way she wrapped her arms around him. Tony sighed sadly. He knew that it was probably his imagination, and that it was never real.

He idly flipped open his phone and looked at his current wallpaper, a picture of him and Kate taken a few weeks before the murder. Ziva had taken the picture with his camera during one of their outings together.

Kate had been smiling naturally at the camera, but Tony had sneaked up behind her and suddenly pulled her back against him with his arm around her neck. The two of them had been in mid laughter, and strangely, the picture had turned out really well. Gibbs turned to look at the photo and smiled genuinely. He always knew that Kate and Tony would have one day ended up together, if not for her sudden murder.

However, he noticed one other thing about the photo that he didn't want to tell Tony. The camera was mainly focused on Tony, and the picture had been resized because of it. Therefore, he also knew that Ziva probably harbored feelings for his son that she constantly denied. He had decided to let Tony figure this one out by himself.

"I miss her a lot, Dad. More than I've ever missed anyone." He said. This was one of the few times that he addressed Gibbs as his father, and so Gibbs gave him one of his rare hugs. "She said she loved me."

"Well, that sounds like Kate. She always did get to the point of the conversation really quick." Gibbs chuckled. He had no doubt that his son at least believed that he had met Kate the other night. What was on his mind, was whether she had 'appeared' for another reason other than to confess, but now was not the time for that.

"We need to find her killer, and fast." Tony stated determinedly, and went to Abby's room to see what she found.

###

"Ziva."

"Yes, Abbah?" She looked up at the computer screen to see her father's displeased look. "Michael has informed me that you were not present at the meeting yesterday."

"He is right, Abbah." She replied. There was no use trying to deny it. "I was with a friend."

"You were tasked to protect your brother, and you could just simply forsake the duty of your own blood for a mere boy?" He said angrily. She didn't flinch when he raised his voice, but she glanced up at him with a certain amount of rage at the mention of Tony.

"You had me followed?" She said, with a hint of spite.

"Of course, I did. You have forgotten your roots. The daughter I raised would not disobey a direct order!" Ziva had to mentally calm herself down, in order for her not to retaliate and shout at her father. She stayed silent on her part of the conversation.

"Now," Eli said in a calm voice."you will go back to Michael, and finish the job. If anyone tries to solve the case, kill them, and leave no trace."

Ziva could not answer, nor look at her father, because she knew that whichever way it went, she would be forced to kill all her friends. There would be nothing she could do to save any of them. The best she could do was to take Tony and run, but he would never forgive her. She couldn't let that happen. Not when they had just lost Kate.

"Also, you are to return to Israel with Michael at the end of your mission." He said, when she did not respond to his orders. He paused, and as if to make himself clearer, said "Your time in the States is over. You will return home permanently and immediately, is that clear?"

Ziva looked at her father in a mix of horror and anger, but swallowed it down. She could not show him any emotion. She could not let him know how she really felt about the situation. "I understand, Abbah."

"Good. I shall tell your aunt to expect you back by the end of the month." Eli said, and turned off the web cam.

"That means one more month to live before all hell breaks lose." Ziva mumbled to herself and stared the now blank computer screen. She sighed heavily and looked at the framed photo on her table.

It was a photo that she had managed to convince a random stranger to take a few weeks before Kate's death. The photo was of her, Tony, and Kate. Tony's arms were looped around both girls, and the three of them were smiling happily. At that time, none of them knew that this group photo would be one of their last ones taken together.

Ziva gently placed the photo back on to her table and asked the smiling brunette girl in the photo a question.

"Why did you fall in love with him, Kate? Now, I can never have him."

###

Okayyyy:P Yep I know, there wasn't enough Tiva interaction here either, was there? Well, I tried, but the plot hasn't come to that yet. I already let Ziva be the one to bring Tony back. Originally, it was going to be Abby... :) I'll be focusing on them more after this chapter, since I had yet to explain Ziva's side to the story.

I hope you guys got a better idea of what Ziva is actually doing, and why. I am trying to be consistent with some of the story plots and characters from the show, so I hope you all forgive me if this is a little out of character. If I made some horrifying mistake, please let me know:) or if you have any suggestions or comments, please hit the review button below^^

Until next time,

~Lianna


	8. Chapter 8 HalfTruths

Circumstances-8

A/N: Argh. Sorry guys. I think I have been watching too much of NCIS season one and two. I missed Kate too much, so I added a bit here for people who like Tate, cos they were my first ship in NCIS, and I owe them something3 I know that having a ghost in the story is SUPER cliche and I apologise for that:((

Disclaimer: consider this one disclaimed, but I will be back to get my vengeance! *dramatic effect as curtain falls* Now, can you imagine handing over a high ratings show to someone like me? Lol:)

Chapter 8 Half-Truths

###

"You had something to show me, Abs?" Gibbs asked as he walked into his daughter's room where Abby, Tim, and Tony were waiting.

"Okay Gibbs. Tim managed to remotely activate your little device, and it's been tracking her every move since." Abby said, and pointed to Tim's laptop that was set up next to hers.

"After setting it up, I took the liberty of cross checking the places she visited very frequently, for example, the school." Tim clicked a few keys on his keyboard, and a log book showing all the places Ziva visited in the last five days came up. "I found that she's also been a regular visitor to our very own NCIS. I have camera proof that show her and an unknown individual entering and exiting the building at different days and times in the same week."

"Facial recognition?" Gibbs asked, he wanted to make sure it was her, before he made any conclusions.

"There was no need for that. She didn't wear any disguise, but her partner did." Abby answered for Tim, while Tony remained silent at the other side of the room. He did not want to out Ziva as a traitor, but the evidence against her seemed pretty convincing.

"Alright. Tony, go and pick her up, and make sure her partner doesn't follow you." Gibbs turned to Tony and instructed. "And...take Tim with you. You'll need to use the device locator to find her."

"Yes, sir." Tony replied, and walked off with Tim trailing behind him.

"Meanwhile, Abby-" Gibbs said and looked at Abby before he was cut off by her.

"Try and figure out who her partner is? Got it, Gibbs." She said, grinning obediently, to which Gibbs handed her a cup of Caf-pow. She grinned at him as he waved and left her to do her work.

###

"Tony. Hey, uh, I know this may be hard for you, and I just wanted to let you know that I've got your back whenever you need it." Tim said as he jogged to keep up with the older boy, who had longer strides that him.

"I'll be fine, McWorry. You worry too much, and you shouldn't, because it shows too much of your girly side." Tony said, and slapped the younger boy on the back playfully. Tim winced, but agreed that he should really stop using his mother's skin cream when she was not around.

"Okay. This looks like the place. The scanner says that Ziva should be right through those doors." Tim said proudly, at the success of his work.

Tony cocked his head at the building. "Uh, Probie, are you kidding me?" He asked. The building was an abandoned warehouse, and the only place still in business was the shady bar on the first floor. However, this small building was not in a good part of town, and the boys were almost certain that the abandoned floors served as drughouses.

Tony texted his father their location, just in case something went wrong. The two boys walked into the bar feeling quite walls were peeling, and most of the place was cleared out, making the place have a desolate feel. The doors were made of hard wood, and they were hard to get open. If it were another occasion, Tony would not have hesitated to make a funny remark, but this time, he pushed the door open himself and let Tim go in.

"You boys look lost. Do you need me to give you a ride back to school?"A deeply voiced man spoke up from the corner of the room. The rest of the people around him laughed.

Tim jumped slightly at his sudden voice, and Tony poked him in the back to get him to calm down. The man had a thick accent and seemed to be the one who ran things around there, because the way he spoke had a certain authority about it.

"Have you seen this girl lately?" Tony asked, signalling Tim to raise the photo he was holding. A seemingly younger man sitting at the end of the bar narrowed his eyes slightly. His face was hidden from them. "Who wants to know?"

"NCIS." Tim answered too fast. Tony immediately knew that was a bad decision, but he was too late to stop him.

The men suddenly got up and approached them as a group. "So, NCIS is now getting kids to do the grunt work eh? You must be quite valuable." He made a hand signal to the men standing behind him that Tony didn't like. "We need to ask you some questions before we let you go home."

The next thing they knew, Tony was glad he texted his father before they went in. The one thing he realised was that, he never got to see the ringleader's face before the lights went out.

###

Gibbs received the text from Tony with much surprise. It was unlike Tony to text him his location, so he got Abby to keep an eye on them just in case. When no more messages came, and no word from them was heard after over an hour, he got worried.

"Abby, I need you to trace Tony's cell." He said.

"That's a no-go Gibbs. His phone is turned off. Tracing the last phone call he made would not be any use, would it?" Abby said, her eyes were wide with worry, and her voice was filled with panic. She typed at the keyboard anxiously, but kept running into walls.

"Not that I know of." Gibbs said with a short sigh. "I've got to get down there."

"Be careful, Gibbs. I don't want to lose my brother too." The young girl said as she bit her lip nervously.

"Goes without saying, Abs." He said and drew her in for a hug before telling her to make sure her mother doesn't worry too much.

The first thing he wanted to do was to rescue the boys, and then he was going to head slap them into the next week.

###

Tony could barely even open his eyes. His body was aching and every breath he took, took more effort that the last, and soon, he didn't want to be burdened with the task anymore.

"You idiot. Were you that eager to see me?" Suddenly, he found the he could open his eyes and he saw a very irritated Kate sitting in front of him.

"Where am I?" He asked. He blinked, and saw the white washed brick walls that were surrounding him. He noticed that he wasn't alone. Ziva was lying on the floor next to his bed, asleep.

"She looks really pretty when she's sleeping doesn't she?" Kate said, when Tony's eyes drifted to her motionless form. "You know, she put up a hell of a fight to be allowed to stay with you. She finally fell asleep after everyone left the room for the night."

"I was just surprised to see her here, of all places! Don't insinuate anything." Tony argued. "And why are you playing matchmaker? Didn't you say you love me?"

"Tony, I'm dead. You need to accept that and move on." She said kindly. "I'm gonna wake her. You two need to talk." She moved over to Ziva's side by shuffling her body, which made Tony stiffle a laugh because it was so like Kate, to do that.

"I'm not gonna see you again, am I?" Tony asked, his expression turning serious.

"Hopefully not. Though seriously, you should learn to keep your mouth shut when people are threatening to kill you." Kate said, as she leaned over to Ziva and whispered something in her ear. Ziva began to stir almost immediately.

Tony looked at the vision of his best friend and wanted to say something, but she already knew what he was thinking. She leaned over to him and pecked him on the lips quickly, before explaining herself. "That's only because I know you will feel guilty when you kiss her for the first time, when you shouldn't. Oh, and Tony? Please tell Abby to tie her hair into pigtails for me!" With that, she disappeared from his sight, and his life, forever.

###

"Hey, Tony. Are you feeling okay?" Ziva asked as she sat up and rubbed her eyes sleepily. She hadn't fully woken up yet, but her mind was concious enough to recognize the shift in weight of the bed.

"I'm alright. Did Gibbs allow you to stay here?" He asked, quite dismissively. After all, he was still upset with her about the massive secrecy and her not telling them about her boyfriend. He could tell that her mood dropped considerably after his inquiry.

"Of course, Tony. Why would you think otherwise?" She said defensively. He saw her quickening change in demeanour from concern to anger, and changed the subject.

"Okay, forget about that. So, when did you get a new a boyfriend?" Tony asked. She look gave him a strange look that hid her true feelings so deep that he wasn't sure that he saw anything at all. "I met Michael last month." She said slowly, as if she was trying out his name for the first time on her tongue. She was telling the truth. They had only met in the last month, when her father sent him.

"I see." He didn't really have anything else to say on the topic, except whether she was happy with him, but he felt that she would think it was too personal a question for her to answer. Therefore, an awkward silence descended on the pair.

The situation dissipated when a knock came on the door, and Jenny came in, asking them if they needed anything. Tony shook his head, but Ziva took the opportunity to leave his room while they hadn't broken out into a fight.

As she descended the stairs, she was greeted by Abby, who seemed to be in a great rush to get away from somewhere. When she saw Gibbs waiting for her below, she knew what was coming. "Ziva, I need to speak to you." He said.

She sat down calmly next to him, as he looked at her with a mass of thoughts circling his mind.

###

"Tony! I'm so glad you're okay!" Abby launched herself into her older brother's arms and hugged him tightly. Jenny graciously stepped out of the room to give them their space.

At first, Tony couldn't breathe, but he managed to slide his arms around her after a bit. She pulled back and took his hand. "Come on, I need to show you something. I just told Gibbs what I've found, and he's NOT HAPPY."

They entered Abby's room and he saw an array of papers all over the place. "Wow, Abs. Been spring cleaning while I was gone?" He teased her as he picked up a random paper from a pile on her floor.

"No, silly!" She smirked, as she took the paper back from him, and stuck out her tongue at his offended expression. "Don't touch these! These are stacked nearly according to places, and those are listed in alphabetical order, and those over there, are listed according to people of importance?" Abby pointed to all parts of her room that was evidently divided into sections.

"I take it, President George Bush isn't in there?" He joked, as he glanced around the messy room that somehow had a form of strange order in it. "No, Tony. These are all facts pertaining to ZIVA'S case." His sister replied. When she turned around to retrieve a folder, he noticed the lack of hair bands present on her hair, and spoke up.

"Hey, Abby. I know it's been hard on you ever since Kate died." The moment he mentioned Kate, he could see the muscles in her back stiffen, but he pressed on. "You've been under a lot of pressure, and haven't been able to grieve properly. So, you're bottling up everything. It's not good Abs."

"Okay, first of all, I am at peace with her death,Tony. I may be bottling up everything, but it's because I can't handle any distractions right now. I promise, I will grieve when we have her funeral, alright? Because I need to focus on solving the case, and and-" She broke off with a sob, and hugged her brother. "I really miss her, Tony."

This time, Tony was prepared for it, and received and returned her hug properly. He stroked her head gently and she quitened almost instantly. He remembered doing this before when she was younger, and it had the same effect. It had been ages since he had actually felt like a big brother to Abby, even though she looked up to him.

"It's going to be alright, Abs." He whispered to her. She nodded weakly in understanding. He suddenly knew what to say to make her believe him.

"You know, Kate told me that she misses you a lot too." He said quietly, and watched as Abby's eyes grew wide. Abby stared at him in awe for a few moments. "Really?" She asked in disbelief.

"Yes. I met her twice! She even told me to tell you that she would like you tie your hair into pigtails again for her." Tony said, and noticed that Abby brightened up after what he said. He knew that she would be a believer in the supernatural after this, but frankly, she would probably have use for it in the future.

His sister scurried to a corner in her room and uncovered a bunch of black hair bands that were previously hidden under a pile of clothing. She held them out to him proudly, and he gladly tied her hair for her.

###

"Ziva, are you in contact with your father?" He asked.

"As expected of any daughter." She replied.

"Are yo- Do you know who Ari Haswari is?" He rephrased to question deliberately, because he had to tread carefully. She was as reactive as a bomb, if not asked the correct questions.

"Yes." She said.

"He is part of the gang who murdered Kate." He continued, waiting for her reaction to the way he asked his question.

She kept silent for a minute, before replying his statement after she realised he had asked a question. "Family always comes first."

"And those people considered family are just people tied to you by blood? You mean to say, Tony isn't a part of your family? Abby?" Gibbs pushed. He knew that family was her weak spot. Always had been. Out of the time they knew each other, Ziva had only mentioned her family once, and that was during a meet the parent session with the principal.

"..." She didn't offer a reply.

###

"So, what else did Kate tell you?" Abby asked as she sat on the bed, her previous intention to tell him something, forgotten. Tony hesitated, and he ran his fingers through his hair nervously. "Um, nothing much."

"Aww c'mon Tony. I haven't seen or heard from her in ages! Anything she said would be welcome, even if it has nothing to do with me." She encouraged gently. She expected that this was a touchy topic but she had the advantage because they were close.

"Well...she sort of told me she loved me." He said. Abby let out a short scream before she covered her mouth quickly, after remembering the situation downstairs.

"No way! I thought she'd never tell you. I mean, you two are perfect for each other!" She whispered as loudly as she could without shouting.

"Were, Abby. She's gone now." He replied softly, and started stroking her pony tails absent-mindedly. She sensed a shift in his mood, and suddenly remembered what she brought him here for.

"Okay, here's what I have." Abby picked up a folder from her table and pushed it towards him.

###

"Ziva, I want to trust you. You've been a family friend to us for a long time now, but you're not making this easy."

"Is there any other way to make it? He's family." She answered.

"I want you, to trust me to have your back, and I hope you will have mine too." Gibbs said, knowing that this way, she would understand his meaning.

"Of course, Gibbs. I trust you and Tony with my life." Ziva said, genuinely.

"But not with your heart." Was his come back that rendered her silent once more. She seemed to weaken slightly at that, but Gibbs didn't want to press the subject. Instead, he just got his coat, and walked off. He didn't even take his gun.

Ziva stared at the gun on the table. Before long, she picked up the gun and followed him. SOMEONE had to watch his back for whatever it was, that he was going to do.

###

Tony looked up from the folder with a horrified look on his face, to see Abby with her back facing him. She was facing the window, and had obviously seen something worrying. He climbed up next to her and followed her finger past the trees to the sidewalk below them.

Gibbs was heading off somewhere without his sidearm, and Ziva seemed to be with him, even though she was trailing behind.

"Abby, is this who they're after?" Tony asked as he held up the photo in the folder.

"Yes. He's the reason I'm doing my usual work like this, without computers. He has been tracking my work ever since the murder! His name is-" Abby said angrily. She had so much of her work stolen or copied by that guy, and was effectively encouraged to find his location and get him caught.

"Ari Haswari." Tony mumbled. He HAD seen him before. He was the angry Israeli that turned up one might at Ziva's. Abby turned to him, surprised at first, but then she figured that he probably already read on.

"Ding ding ding! You're absolutely right, Tony! Okay, now I managed to trace his location, even though it was tough tracing burnt cellphones, and guess where he is RIGHT now."

"NCIS?"

"You're getting cocky today." Abby smirked. "But yes, you're right, and I have a really bad feeling about where those two were headed."

Without much thought, Tony told Abby to activate the tracking device on Ziva.

###

Okay, so what did you guys think of this one? It was a bit far fetched at the beginning to me... But I don't mind the last few parts. I was partially satisfied, I guess:) haha but that's just me.

Do you guys consider this a cliffie? Wouldn't blame you for it, but more reviews would make me update faster all the same:) Any suggestions would be very welcome:D

Until next time,

~Lianna


	9. Chapter 9 Silence

Circumstances-9

A/N: HELLO My Dear Readers! I AM SO SO SORRY. I am in the midst of my mid-year examinations, so I really didn't have time to write:( But here is the very delayed chapter 9!

Please enjoy this chapter:DDD

Disclaimer: Nope. Sadly I don't own this.

Chapter 9 Silence

###

His phone had been turned off for the past week, to avoid anyone who was able to trace him. He had only just switched it on to check his voice messages after reaching the safety of his sister's home, and found that out of the few he had, there was one in which he found particularly intriguing.

"Mr Haswari, this is Special Agent Gibbs from NCIS. That little girl you got killed a while ago? She was my god-daughter. I just wanted to let you know that we're on to you. I'll be seeing you very soon."

Ari raised his eyebrows slightly at his phone, and immediately turned it off again. He sat down on the sofa cautiously, as if anything there could and would, trigger an explosion. He opened his secure laptop and went into the already hacked NCIS system, and searched for a Special Agent Gibbs. Strangely, his name was not in the government employee database. That is, until, he decided to check under the ex-employee list. He allowed himself a small smirk when he saw what the folder contained.

Ari headed straight for NCIS headquarters after leaving the file had contained a message for him to meet Gibbs at the basement of the NCIS main building. So, he sent an encrypted message to his contacts to make sure everything was going smoothly on their side. After all, he still had a lot to do in the States, before he could even THINK of heading home. Unlike his half-sister, who was only allowed to remain in US, because she had been tasked to be his back up.

Ari knew that Gibbs had probably set it up, but he was a smart player who loved winning. He had always been able to gain the upper hand in any situation, so how would this be any different? He just had to find Gibbs' weak point, and from what he had inferred, he may have already found it.

###

Gibbs entered the dimly lit bullpen alone. The place was basically empty except for the lone shadow at the far end of the room, and the sound of the keyboard clicking.

"Special Agent Gibbs, how are you?" The man spoke, without looking up from the keyboard. His voice bore an eerily calm tone for this situation, which made him all the more dangerous.

"Ari. I thought you wouldn't make it." Gibbs said, and leaned against the staircase, his eyes never leaving the other man. After all, he didn't have a weapon on hand.

"It's good to know that I can surprise you." Ari answered. He didn't stop typing, but he paused to look Gibbs in the eye. They could have fought violently the moment they saw each other, but instead, they communicated everything they neede to say with their eyes.

"It's not good for you, Ari. You killed someone in cold blood." Gibbs said reasonably.

"I did not murder that girl that you are so blatantly referring to. What was her name? Caitlyn, am I right?" Ari said, with an air of confidence. It was as if the man felt no fear for anything. Not even death. "She was a cute thing, eh?"

Gibbs didn't respond to his remark. He knew that responding without thought, would be exactly what Ari wanted. It would be an excuse for Ari to do something rash. He did move a bit closer than he should have, which caused Ari to rise from his seat.

"Mr Gibbs, you really shouldn't have underestimated me." Ari said, as he slowly took out his gun from his pocket, and pointed it as Gibbs. "Did you really think that I would come here unprepared, and just surrender to you?"

Gibbs slowly put his hands up in surrender and moved back, as Ari walked closer threateningly. He kept the gun leveled on Gibbs' face, but lowered it slightly when he seemed to be satisfied with the amount of control he had over the situation.

"I'm just going to kill you, and leave. I can't be caught, Gibbs. I have a much bigger plan to fulfil, and I have a special weapon to help me finish it." He said, with a tone of finality. He raised his gun once more and took aim.

A single shot rang out in the room.

###

She was still breathing heavily minutes after pulling the trigger. She knew she had no choice but to do it, since he was going to kill Gibbs. She couldn't let that happen.

Ziva stood over his motionless body, gun still in hand, without a shred of emotion on her face, as if she was daring his dead body to rise again so she could shoot him once more. She could not even shed a tear for what she had just done.

She had just shot her brother through the head without hesitation, all because he became a threat to Gibbs' life. She should feel dishonored and ashamed for the terrible sin she had committed, for her father would surely be over the edge with anger. She had just murdered her own brother, and yet, all she could feel was a strange sense of relief.

It was only when Gibbs pulled up a chair and made her sit down, that she realized that her legs were shaking slightly. He came back with a cup of steaming coffee that tasted so bitter, that she winced when she drank it.

"Is there no sugar?" She asked, trying to spit the coffee out. Gibbs laughed, and replied that the good coffees never needed any. "But sadly, this is not one of them." He continued.

She offered him the coffee instead, and he drank half the cup in one sitting. 'Well, I have no doubt that that's how he stays awake everyday.' She thought, as she took the large cup back and attempted to sip the hot liquid. It didn't taste that bad the second time around, but Gibbs was right, it was not good.

The two of them were acting so normally, that it was almost as if the past few weeks, that had been filled with fear and tension, never even happened. They sat in opposing chairs facing each other, talking about random things that came into their minds. Gibbs had already dialled NCIS, and the cops would most probably be there any minute.

Still, the two parties were not showing any signs of fear, or worry. One, a former marine, had already seen so much bloodshed, that he knew how to control his emotions. The other, the only remaining child of the Director of Mossad, had seen and felt extreme loss that hit close to home, so she had learned how to effectively hide all weaknesses and emotion.

They were still sipping their drinks and made no move to get up, when the police burst through the doors, along with Jenny, a few minutes later.

###

"What now, Jethro?" Jenny stood at the table after the events of the day. Her husband sat without saying a word. She narrowed her eyes slightly at his stubbornness.

"You take the rap for killing Ari, and now what's going to happen? You have no proof that he was the one that pulled the trigger for Kate." She continued sharply, since he did not respond to her words. Mentioning Kate, did the trick.

"He orchestrated the entire thing. That's as good as pulling the trigger to me." Gibbs said stonily. He was still pondering over the questioning that happened earlier, which ended with him admitting to killing Ari, and pointing Ziva out as a bystander.

Jenny sighed and slumped into the chair opposite him. "Jethro, I know Kate was special to you. We're all grieving in different ways, but you can't let this case drag you down." He looked up at her, with a side glance towards the stairs.

She followed his gaze and noted the soft padding of feet running across the hallway, when their conversation stopped. "You think that's Abby?" She offered.

"I know." He replied, and got up abruptly, sliding the seat back. Jenny sighed again, knowing that their conversation was over for now. He gave her a short look, before going towards their bedroom.

Being alone once more, Jenny looked at the chair in front of her. She allowed her eyes to bore a hole in the chair where he previously sat, for a minute, before going to bed.

There was so much that had been left unsaid between them, and she knew that someday, she would have to gather the courage to dig it up from him.

###

"What are we going to do now, Tony?" The younger girl's worried gaze frightened him, but what scared him more was the silence from the other girl who sat beside him.

"I don't know, Abby." He sighed, as he ran his hand through his hair. That answer didn't satisfy her though, as she got up impatiently, and shook his shoulders hard.

"You can't not know, Tony. Gibbs and Jenny DON'T argue. EVER. Those words that they just exchanged down there? They were part of a very subdued argument that they wanted to keep under wraps!" Abby bit her lips anxiously, and released her brother, after he gave her no response. "How can you just sit there and not be worried?"

Although he said nothing, Tony knew she was right about their parents. Beneath all the false bravado, lay a strong reason for their agitation and worry. "Nevermind. I'll let you guys go to bed. Sorry Ziva, you must be exhausted." Abby said sympathetically, and hugged her and Tony, before retreating to her room.

"You can take the bed. I'll take the floor." Tony said, as he shifted his cushion and the sleeping bag, so that he could lie down. Ziva looked down at him, and shook her head.

"You should take the bed, Tony. I only came to your room because Abby's room is too small for even her to sleep properly." She slid off the bed gracefully and knelt beside him on the floor, waiting for him to get up. Tony ignored her, and rolled over to face away from her. "Tony." She said again, trying to get his attention.

Tony snored loudly in an effort to deter her, but she simply let out a small laugh and gave him a swift push. "Hey, if you are not getting out of there, then I hope you are prepared to share the sleeping bag."

His eyes snapped open in mock horror, but obediently moved aside to make room for her. This time, he ignored the questioning look she gave him, and pulled the blanket over them. She shrugged when she realised that he wasn't going anywhere, and turned herself onto her side, keeping as much distance between their bodies as possible.

Tony wasn't sure how to react. For one, he hadn't expected Ziva to willingly go into bed with him, and although she wasn't facing him, he could feel that she had been caught by surprise at her own sudden decision. He wanted to say something, anything, to get her to talk to him.

Anyone could have guessed what had happened in that span of time before Jenny burst through the door, and he knew that she may need someone to talk to, even if she didn't admit it.

He had overheard the police talking among themselves, when they inadvertently revealed that his father had taken the rap for the shooting. Tony didn't blame him for doing so, nor did he resent Ziva for not taking the blame herself. However, he did worry that she was bottling everything up inside, like what she did, when Kate was killed. He didn't sleep, and spent half the night watching her back, literally.

###

HERE IT IS:) I'm really sorry for not updating this fic sooner. I've been having exams, so I really couldn't find any time to finish this chapter, until today:(( I hope you guys aren't too mad:3

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, though:D I know it's not saying much by the time we reach the end, but I'm writing the next chapter now:) so it should be up relatively soon:D

Review, please? I would love to know what you think:)

Until next time,

~Lianna


	10. Chapter 10 Letting Go

Circumstances-10

A/N: HEY GUYS. Thanks for all the new alerts for this story;) I appreciate it;) This is the last chapter for this story, because I felt that it has been dragging on for a while, and the amount of exams I've been having hasn't allowed me to have time to write much... Sorry. Hope you like it! (Well, those of you who are still reading, anyway)

Disclaimer- NCIS is not mine, however the writers NEED to get Tiva together soon. Caskett has already become canon, Polivia too, and B&B are having a kid together. It's already the ninth season:/ If it takes much longer, I may need to storm the studio:X

Chapter 10 Letting Go

###

She knew that he was watching her, or at least trying to. She could feel his intense stare prickling onto her skin, and she wished he would go to sleep. His gaze was filled with uncertainty, warmth, and friendship, but thankfully, not pity; and for that, she was happy.

Ziva knew she had to place herself as far as she could, from his warm body, which led to her sleeping with her body pressed against the side of the bag. She knew he was disappointed at her decision, but she chose to ignore his subtle hints. As far as she knew, Tony could never be fully hers, not when he still belonged to her best friend.

She would never admit it to anyone, but her decision to sleep on the floor was part stubbornness, and partly because she wanted him as close to her as possible, without seeming desperate. It wasn't because of fear, but more of the discomfort she felt, after shooting one of her own flesh and blood, to protect someone unrelated to her. It went against all of her inbred rules, but it had still felt morally right.

She managed to hold back all her tears, until she was sure that Tony had fallen asleep. Then, she slipped out of the bag silently, and retreated towards the bathroom downstairs. Along the way, she accidentally missed a step when she reached for the door knob, because the tears that she had been fighting against, had begun to cloud her vision.

Although she didn't make a too much of a sound, she cursed inwardly, knowing that there was a high chance that Tony would have heard it, and gotten up. She quickened her pace towards the one room in the house that she could go to.

Upon reaching the bathroom, she turned the lights to a minimum, and went in. As Ziva passed the mirror above the sink, she paused and subconsciously judged her own reflection. She looked terrible, like all her scars, visible and invisible, were all coming to surface.

She didn't want his pity. It would be that much worse than him telling her that she does not mean anything to him, to her face. As much as she was brought up to hide her emotions, she knew that Tony would see right through it. It was a weakness that she could not avoid unless she got rid of him, which she would rather die than do.

Her thoughts morphed into her brother, lying face up on the floor, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, with a bullet hole in his head. It hurt her heart to know that she was the one responsible for it. She had knowingly betrayed and dishonored her family. Without thinking about it much longer, more tears slipped out from her eyes, and she swiped at them furiously.

Ziva shifted so that she could kneel on the floor, while facing away from the bathroom door. She quickly shut the door, knowing that the light could attract someone else's unwanted attention. When she was sure of her guaranteed privacy, she let the tears that had been building up, fall.

###

He knew it the moment she twisted her body out of the blanket. He had been listening closely to her uneven breathing, and before long, he had drifted off. However, the slight movement of the sheets woke him up, but he decided to wait until she got far enough, before 'waking up'.

He heard a soft creak as Ziva stood up, and he held his breath. He knew that she was watching him for any indication that he was concious. Any outcome of her finding out that he waiting for a reaction, was dangerous for his health. So, he decided to play it safe, and lay low.

She seemed to believe that he was still asleep, so she slipped out of the room without making another sound. Tony waited for a total of 30 seconds, before he assumed that the coast was clear. He carefully got up, and followed, trying to avoid any trick steps along the way.

He made a beeline for the small ray of light that protruded from the small gap in between the closed bathroom door, and the floor. He could hear soft murmurings coming from inside, and half wondered if Ziva was on the phone with someone. As he inched closer, Tony recognized the sounds he heard, as sobs.

He took a second to hesitate, to think of what her reactions to hus intrusion might be. She could shut him out completely, hate him forever, or just completely lose her trust in him for doing this. The one thing he did know, was that he might be the only person that she would allow, comfort her. That reason alone, drove him to push the door open and step in.

###

She flinched harshly when she heard him step in, and shut the door behind him. She wished she had had the sense to lock the door after she went in, so she could have avoided that situation. She stilled her sobs and waited. Waited for him to move, or say something.

The silence that the small room plunged into, was filled with unspoken thoughts and half hidden feelings. For a moment, Ziva thought he was going to quickly walk out and pretend he never saw her in this state, but the moment passed, and Tony was still standing there.

The realization that she was still in a kneeling position on the floor, and he was standing motionless behind her back, hit her like a wave on a beach. She made a quick move to get up, but mid-way, Tony's arms slid around her waist and halted her movements. She felt his breath, warm, against her neck, as he mimicked her position to make himself more comfortable while holding her.

"I knew you'd come here." Tony whispered against the smooth skin of her neck, and she shivered involuntarily at his closeness. She didn't have much to say to that, so she sighed softly in reply and leaned into his hug.

They let things hang there for a minute, before she broke the silence with a question. "Why made you come after me?"

"Oh, I knew you must've been a bit shaken up after what happened, so-"

"Not just now. I know that you and Abby have been tracking my movements for a while." Ziva felt his body tense up suddenly, but she didn't move and neither did he. Finally, he spoke. His answer came out strained, as if he was debating whether he should say it.

"Look, we were worried, okay? You'd been acting distant, and we weren't sure if you were-" He suddenly cut off his own sentence with a jerky shake of his head, and looked away.

"Compromised?" She asked softly, turning her head towards him.

"Hurt!" He immediately corrected her, his tone, a little too harsh. She sensed his discomfort, and started to move away. He instantly held her back, and apologized. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way."

"Michael was only with me as a cover." She blurted out, and Tony raised his eye brows at her. She gave a slight shrug and answered his unspoken question. "Just thought you might want to know that." She looked at him expectantly. After a moment, he caved.

"I-we thought you were in trouble. You just pulled away from us, all of a sudden, and none of us could contact you. Well, Abs had an idea to put a bug in your stuff so that we'd know whether you're okay, and it sort of went from there."

She pet his hands that remained on her waist gently, and linked their fingers together. He tightened his grip on her, as if afraid that she'd run away or disappear. She shifted uncomfortably, pulling her legs closer to her ribs. Not that she minded the close contact, but having her legs pressed against the sink wasn't very comfortable.

Her kneeling position on the floor had morphed into one with her almost sitting in Tony's lap, her knees bunched up against her chest, and Tony's back pressed against the wall for the lack of space in the small bathroom.

"So, what now?" Ziva spoke up quietly, as she played with the messy strands of her hair that were framing her face.

"We go back to being who we were before everything started?" Tony replied hesitantly. He began to feel a slight jolt of fear when she did not answer him. She suddenly let out a bitter laugh.

"Tony, Kate was murdered, and I just shot and killed my brother in cold blood. Going back is not really an option, I think." Knowing the truth was something, but hearing her admit it, was something else. It was said in a tone that nearly chilled the blood in his veins. However, he forced down his apprehension, and maintained his nonchalent tone, determined to keep her afloat.

"Then, I guess, the only option, is to move forward." He said, just as softly. She let out a painful sigh, and finally relaxed in his arms. At first, he thought that she might have fallen asleep, and he was about to get up and carry her to the room. It was only when his hands felt damp, that he realised that she was crying.

"They're gone, Tony. I've lost Kate, Michael, Abba, Ari, everyone who cared about me." Tony turned her body to face him, and she curled up against his side instantly. He wanted to say "you've got me! I'm not leaving anytime soon", but he knew it was too soon for her.

So he just held her, like a best friend would, while she cried into his shoulder, clinging to him like he was the only thing that kept her from losing all her control, because that was who she needed right then. She didn't need someone to pick her up and carry her, she just needed someone who would let her get up herself, and walk by her side.

So, for the first time since the havoc began, Tony felt a strange wave of calm and peace wash over him, and he knew that this was not the end. Life had a way of correcting mistakes. Ari got his comeuppance. Gibbs finally got the closure he needed. Abby got her dream of showing up the normal lab scientists. Kate died the way she would have wanted to, a hero. Tim grew up in different ways. Ziva and Tony would have their own chance to change their own circumstances in the future, but until then, only time can tell.

~Finé

###

Hello readers! I know this was probably not the ending you'd expect from me, but I felt that the mood was fitting to the whole story line. I didn't want to end up creating this whole fairy tale ending when the main point of the story is about them dealing with their best friend dying. So, I thought that having them finally learn to let go of that, was a better ending.

In fact, I had to change the story a few times, which is the reason for my lateness in updating this chapter.. I apologise again! GOMENASAI! :( MIANE! SORRY:(

Thanks for sticking with me till the end of this! I hope you all enjoyed it:) I'll be back to writing more fanfics after my exams next week! :$ Since my holidays start soon, I may have more chances to write so... :D See you soon:3

Reviews are appreciated!

~Lianna


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